Ripped from the Headlines
by Nerwen Aldarion
Summary: Based on a true story: the team looks for a missing pregnant Lance Corporal who accused her commanding officer of rape. Meanwhile the case affects Ziva and a secret that she has been hiding. Tiva
1. Cleopatra, Queen of Denial

Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS, I'd love to meet the cast though

A/N: Hey this is technically my second NCIS fic, for those fans who saw my first one I apologize, my computer died and I lost the rest of that story so it is essentially dead. The good news is that I think this story is way better than that one.

As the title suggests this story is based on a real case, Lance Corporal Maria Lauterbach, for those of you who don't know Maria was raped and killed by her commanding officer, Corporal Cesar Laurean, when she was eight months pregnant with his child by the rape. Many other crime shows take cases from real life and incorporate them and it was my wish that NCIS would do so with this case, so I decided to write it. Things will be different, I will change some outcomes but most of the facts will be the same and I will of course add some Tiva drama.

For this story Tony and Ziva have been in a relationship for six months, the time of this story is set some time in the indeterminate future.

Enjoy

* * *

Ripped from the Headlines

Chapter 1: Cleopatra, Queen of Denial

Tony decided that there were many benefits to finally getting into a relationship with Ziva; he'd be lying if he didn't admit that at the top of that list was the goings on in the bedroom. There was also the fact that she was an undeniably good cook, after a few home-made omelets and steak with potatoes dinners he'd begun to wonder why he ever found fast-food joints appealing. Then there were the little things, sitting on the sofa with her head on his chest, explaining to her the plot-line of the John Wayne film they were watching, and just waking up to see her beautiful brown eyes in the morning, all of these contributed to his complete happiness in this moment in time.

But Tony wasn't drawing on the positive things from their relationship, at this moment all Tony could think of is why the hell women take five years to go to the bathroom!

"Ziva, come on!" Tony yelled through the closed door, "You've been in there for half-an-hour!" He proceeded to knock on the door loudly but the sound of his phone ringing stopped him, "Great," he muttered, his cell-phone ringing on a Sunday meant one thing: a case. He flipped open his cell phone, "DiNozzo," he spoke and the on-call dispatch proceeded to tell him to come in immediately. He tuned out their annoying voice and his eyes focused on the closed bathroom door.

What the heck was Ziva doing in there?

_OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo_

Ziva had heard Tony's plea to open the door despite the fact that she'd been ignoring his attempts to break down the door. She hadn't been primping for the day, brushing her teeth or any of the other suggestions Tony had mumbled about while trying to pick the lock. All she'd been doing was sitting on the closed toilet staring at the pregnancy test in her hand.

The positive pregnancy test.

For the twentieth time she compared the test to the answers on the box, hoping that perhaps she was reading the results wrong. Ziva knew she was fooling herself, the plus sign only meant one thing.

_This cannot be happening_ she thought leaning her head against the wall. This was without a doubt the worst timing, she and Tony had only been in a relationship for six months! NCIS didn't even know about them yet, her father probably did thanks to his spies following every move she made. She groaned; her father was not going to like this, best case scenario: he would demand that she return home. Worst case scenario: her father shoots Tony.

Neither option appealed to Ziva.

Her father's reaction wasn't the one Ziva was worried about; she couldn't begin to imagine how Tony would feel. Sometimes he acted like a child himself how was he supposed to raise one? He didn't even know how to act around them; during her first year here Zach Tanner could barely be in the same room as Tony, though Carson Taylor had liked him that probably had something to do with the fact that they were practically clones.

Perhaps denial was the best way to approach this.

"Ziva, you have got to come out of there now!" Tony yelled from behind the door. Fed up with his yelling, she hid the pregnancy test and box in the cabinet underneath some wrinkled washcloths and behind half-empty bottles of soap.

"What Tony?" She asked annoyed once she swung the door open.

Tony looked up her up and down with a look of surprise, "That must have been one bad hair-day for you to spend nearly an hour in there."

"It was not an hour," she told him still frustrated.

"I beg to differ," Tony replied, "you went into the bathroom at exactly 6:13, I know this because I was…"

"Enough!" Ziva held up one of her hands, "What is it?"

"Call just came in, we've got a missing Lance Coporal," Tony explained, "I'd get changed first if I were you, unless you want to show up with just my shirt on," his gaze fell to her long tapering legs underneath the said argument, "I sure wouldn't mind it."

It was at times like these that Ziva loved Tony and hated him at the same time

* * *

McGee was already at his desk when Ziva stepped off of the elevator and into the familiar squad room. "Hey Ziva," McGee remarked once he saw her, "I was working on my new novel when the call came in, you?"

_Sitting in the bathroom watching my worst nightmare come to life…no wait, deny, deny, deny._ "Not much," she replied.

"Did you get a hold of Tony?" He asked, not noticing her avoidance to answer the question.

"Oh he should be here any minute," she replied knowing full well that he was only a few minutes behind her. Over the last few months they had gotten very good at showing up to work without letting it on that they'd been spending the hours in between cases together.

The elevator pinged and McGee looked up, "Speak of the devil."

"Goooooooooood morning Vietnam!" Tony quoted as he spotted his two teammates.

Ziva looked up at him confused, "We are in Washington D.C."

"Really?" Tony remarked, "I thought we'd teleported to The Enterprise."

"Why did you say we were in Vietnam?"

"I didn't," Tony explained, "That was from a movie, _Good Morning, Vietnam_ with Robin Williams, Forest Whitaker…"at Ziva's still puzzled looks Tony sighed, "So much work to be done."

"You think DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked as he entered the squad room his signature coffee cup in his hand.

"Hey boss I was just explaining to Ziva….it's not important," Tony faltered when Gibbs gave him his famous stare.

"Good choice, gear up!" Gibbs told his team, "We've got a missing Lance Corporal Mary Lambert."

The team quickly grabbed their badges, bags and guns per the usual routine, "How long has she been missing?" Ziva asked as she followed Gibbs to the elevator with Tony and McGee behind her.

"Since 2100 yesterday," Gibbs told them.

"Short time frame boss," Tony remarked, "usually they wait 24 hours to report them UA."

"Well this is a special case," Gibbs explained, "she's in the middle of a rape case against her CO, evidence still pending. She's also on leave."

"For what?"

"She's pregnant."

Ziva couldn't hide the horrified expression on her face when the elevator doors closed.

Denial wasn't working out for her.

* * *

Lance Corporal Mary Lambert's home was empty, not that the NCIS agents were expecting anything else. From outside the house nothing seemed amiss, inside is where things got interesting. It was Tony who caught the first clue, "Boss there's a cell phone on the floor near the door, looks like somebody dropped it…maybe in a struggle."

"It wouldn't be easy to kidnap a pregnant woman at eight months," Gibbs remarked surveying the small living room.

"The door does not appear to have been forced in," Ziva inferred, "_if_ someone did take Lance Corporal Lambert she probably knew them."

Gibbs didn't say anything; he continued to look around the room. A book of baby names sat on the end table, the remote on the arm of the sofa, shoes kicked off on the floor. It looked like she'd been settling in for the night. Who interrupted what should have been a normal evening for her?

A knock on the door broke the silence, Gibbs looked up to see a young African American officer, "I'm Corporal Michael Jennings, Lance Corporal Lambert's CO you must be Agent Gibbs."

Gibbs nodded, "Agents DiNozzo and McGee and Officer David," he introduced his team quickly, "You the one who called it in?"

"Yes sir," Jennings explained, "Considering her condition I make it a habit to check up on her in the mornings, her family lives out of town and she doesn't have a lot friends after everything that occurred with her former CO."

"You think we can move this outside Corporal?" Gibbs asked, "We need to preserve the crime scene."

"Of course sir."

"McGee, with me," Gibbs told his youngest field agent, "DiNozzo, David, sketches, photographs."

A few minutes later, Gibbs, McGee and Jennings were outside on the front walk, "I was aware that Lance Corporal Lambert had a rape accusation against her former CO," Gibbs remarked to Jennings.

"Yes sir Corporal Enrique Ramirez," Jennings explained, "She reported the rape eight months ago, the charge was investigated but there wasn't much to go on…"

"But then she found out she was pregnant," Gibbs finished.

"Yes sir," the Corporal continued, "the case was put on hold and a paternity test would have been done after the child was born."

"She could've had an affair with him," Gibbs noted.

"I'm aware of that but Ramirez has always claimed that he never touched Lambert, it's all he said she said but Lambert had no reason to ever lie about the rape," Jennings noted, "I spoke to some of the other men in her unit. All of them said the same thing; Ramirez never outright did anything inappropriate but sometimes his manner suggested otherwise. He is also known for having a temper…"

"So do a lot of Marines."

"But those Marines haven't been accused of spousal abuse," Jennings finished.

McGee perked up, "He's beaten his wife."

"I believe so, yes," He continued, "she never filed charges but her friends all said the same thing, Ramirez is bad news. In my opinion, if Lambert is missing, he's behind it."

"Why?" Gibbs asked, "The rape charges are flimsy at best."

"I'm aware of that," the Corporal agreed, "but when that paternity test proves Ramirez is the father at the very least it will prove he had relations with Lambert."

"And that would be the end of his career," Gibbs finished.

"More than enough reason to want her gone," McGee inferred.

"Yeah," Gibbs agreed looking at the neighborhood around them, "the question is: where is she?"

* * *

Deny, deny, deny, the words repeated in Ziva's head as she and Tony continued to survey the small home. She repeated the words as she searched the living room, she repeated the words when she looked through the kitchen; she repeated the words when she looked through Lambert's bedroom, but the next room she looked in drew her mind to a blank.

The baby's room.

It was painted in soft shades of yellow with a crisp white crib, changing table and dresser. A dark wooden rocking chair sat in the corner next to a large stuffed giraffe and elephant. The paintings on the wall reflected a jungle theme, hippos and lions peeking from under water and behind trees smile at Ziva. A mobile with a tiger, lion, monkey, elephant and zebra hung above the crib with a stuffed monkey sitting in the corner of the crib. The words "It's a boy!" were displayed over the changing table in soft blue letters and Ziva was certain that if she opened the drawers to the dresser she would find many baby blue jumpers and sleepers.

The entire room was bright and colorful, beautiful and touching, Ziva could easily see Mary Lambert sitting in the rocking chair gently humming a lullaby as she rocked her son to sleep. A pain in her heart grew as the image changed and instead Ziva saw herself sitting in the chair with _her_ child in her arms.

An involuntary smile came to her lips when she thought of cradling a newborn son or daughter in her arms. A little girl that she could dress up and later as she got older, braid her hair and sing songs with. A little boy she could hold close and watch him play sports. The smile grew when Ziva saw her son with Tony, throwing a baseball back and forth, arms outstretched waiting for a joyous hug.

"Ziva?!"

She was broken from her thoughts by none other than Tony, "What are you doing?" he asked since it was obvious that she was no longer investigating.

Ziva continued to look around the baby's room, "She was having a boy," she remarked with awe.

"Yeah," Tony agreed still confused, "are you alright?" Ziva didn't reply, she was still entranced by the room and her own thoughts. "Ziva," he touched her shoulder to force her to look at him, "Are you alright? You've been acting…weird for a little while now, with the party in the bathroom this morning and you haven't been talking that much over the last few days."

"I'm fine Tony," Ziva told him, _Deny_, she reminded herself, _no matter how much you don't want to._

"I don't think you are."

"We have a case to work on, yes?" Ziva reminded him, "why don't we find Lance Corporal Lambert before you question my health."

Tony stared at her quizzically for a moment more, "We should finish checking the house," he said obviously allowing the conversation to drop for the moment.

Ziva stayed in the room a minute longer, still touched by it's warm feeling, before following Tony to the another room. The bathroom was next and as neat as the rest of the house, nothing seemed amiss at all until Ziva noticed something a little peculiar.

The shower curtain was wet.

She kneeled next to the tub and pulled the curtain away, the tub was pristine except for a few faint stains the could be nothing more than bad cleaning…or something more. With rubber gloves she gently felt around the drain, she didn't feel any blockage but when she looked at the liquid stained on the white glove it came off with a reddish pink tint.

"Tony!" She called quickly, her heart plummeting at what this may be…and what it might infer.

"You found something?" He asked when he stepped inside the small bathroom.

"Maybe," she repeated pulling a blood test from the kit as well as some q-tips. First she gently swabbed the inside of the drain, the head of the q-tip was stained an even darker red than the fingertip of her glove. She dripped some solution over the tip and her heart sank further when it glowed a bright purple, "Its blood."

She took another q-tip and repeated the procedure but this time swabbed the now blood-stained tip inside another small container of solution, she squeezed a drop on an indicator to see if it was human. The single line made her heart plummet even more than the positive result she'd received earlier that morning. "It's human."

Tony looked at the results with a grim face, "Doesn't look like we're looking for a missing person anymore."

"No," Ziva agreed, "now we're looking for a murderer."

_*Foof*_

* * *

A/N: I hate to end it there but it just seemed like the perfect moment for a Foof, please send me your reviews since I am a poor college student and reviews are better than chocolate.


	2. Baby Blues

Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS, I wish I did because I would love to meet Micheal Weatherly, he's cute.

A/N: hey guys sorry about the wait but I had about four tests to study for since I'm a college student. I wish I could have written fanfiction instead of study but if I did that then I woudl fail my clases, get kicked out of college and I would be very sad. To make up for the wait this chapter is twice as long as the last one. On another note, there is some spanish in this chapter, Spanish is not my major or minor to me it is just a headache so if I did anything wrong with the grammer or words, please don't shoot me.

I'm really proud of the this chapter especially the interrogation scene, I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

* * *

Chapter 2: Baby Blues

"Lance Corporal Mary Lambert was born and raised in Dayton, Ohio," Tony announced as he clicked an image of Lambert onto the plasma, "she signed up for the Marines right out of high school and when to basic training in North Carolina. Eight months ago she claims she was raped by this man," another image popped on the screen, "Corporal Enrique Ramirez, her CO."

He turned to look at Gibbs, "I talked to the NCIS agents in charge of the rape case, Lambert waited three days to report it so there wasn't any physical evidence and Ramirez has always denied that any sexual allegations took place between them, and there wasn't any proof."

"Until Mary turned up pregnant," Ziva finished.

"Ding ding ding, we have a winner!" Tony shouted like Chuck Woolery, "suddenly the case was wide open, they might not be able to prove rape but it would certainly damage Ramirez's credibility. A paternity test was to be scheduled as soon as Lambert had given birth and a hearing was to be held pending the results of the test, according to the agents in charge it was doubtful rape charges would have stuck but at least Ramriez might have gotten a DOD."

"But all of this hinges on the paternity test," McGee piped in, "without it there's no case."

"And without a baby, there's no paternity test," Tony agreed, "and now Lambert's missing, so is the baby."

"And it all comes back to Ramirez," Ziva finished, "He's got motive."

"And opportunity," McGee explained, "He lives on the same base as Lambert."

Ziva nodded her understanding, "We need to talk to him."

"You think David?" Gibbs asked from behind his desk, he stood up and grabbed his jacket, "Gear up."

"Agent Gibbs?!" He looked up to see a middle-aged woman with long blond hair graying at the temples, stepping off of the elevator. Her brown eyes bespoke pain and defeat, "Agent Gibbs?" she asked again.

"Yes ma'am?" he asked and she hurried to the team's place in the squad room.

"You're Agent Gibbs," she stated, "the team looking for my daughter?"

"You're Lance Corporal Lambert's mother?"

She nodded, "I'm Susan Lambert. I was staying at a friend's outside the base when Corporal Jennings told me Mary was missing."

Gibbs noted the emotions behind her words, "You weren't staying with your daughter?"

Susan looked at the ground, her eyes now told of shame, "Mary and I have…problems, she didn't even know I was here." She looked back up at Gibbs with tears in her eyes, "Agent Gibbs, is there anything you can tell me? Anything at all?"

He looked into her eyes sincerely, "Ma'am all I can do is promise you that I will do everything in my power to find your daughter, meanwhile you could help us by telling us everything you can about her." He turned to his team, "Ziva," Gibbs called to the Mossad officer and pulling her out of earshot of Susan, "talk to Mrs. Lambert, find out as much as you can."

"Gibbs I'm not good with mothers," Ziva reminded him, the last thing she wanted to do was to talk to a weeping woman, especially if she might miss out on smashing Enrique Ramriez's face in.

"Excuse me but may I ask who is team leader?"

Ziva sighed knowing she'd dug her own grave, "You."

"That's right and since I'm team leader that means I give out orders and you command them," He looked at her sternly, "do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir," Ziva replied clearly not happy with the outcome.

Gibbs gave her one last look, for a fleeting second Ziva feared that he might see straight into her, like he could read her thoughts and see where her strange mood was stemming from. It wasn't a ridiculous train of thought, it was Gibbs. But he turned away, "Come on," he told the two remaining team members. Ziva watched them walk away and into the waiting elevator.

* * *

Susan Lambert was not a fool, Ziva decided after a few minutes in the older woman's presence. They had moved to a small conference room often reserved for questioning, not interrogations. Susan had been quiet and frank, first explaining small parts of Mary's life, nothing entirely helpful but enough to keep Ziva's interest in the missing woman. But she needed to get to the point, "Mrs. Lambert, you said your daughter didn't know that you were here?"

Susan pursed her lips and shook her head sadly, "Mary and I have a…difficult relationship. Everything was fine when she was a child but when she grew older and unruly we just couldn't seem to agree on anything anymore," she looked away from Ziva, "you couldn't understand."

Ziva shook her head, "I do," she replied truthfully. Her thoughts flew to her father and their own strained relationship. They were still barely speaking, he only knew as much as he did about her life because he sent spies to inform him of her every move. It was going to be a nightmare when he found out about the baby. No she couldn't think that way; she had a missing Lance Corporal to find.

Mrs. Lambert smiled at Ziva a little, "Then you know how easy it is to fall into this hole you've been making only to be trapped with no way out. That was what happened, Mary left after she graduated high school for the Marines; to get away I guess. I refused to contact her because of that…that was my mistake."

Now she started to cry, "Six months ago I found out Mary had been raped, I only found out because that bastard's lawyer called me to try and get me to testify against her. My baby, he hurt her and I wasn't there for her. She couldn't even call me because I shut her out…and then it was too late." She wiped the tears from her eyes, "I tried to contact her, to help her with the baby and the hearing but she didn't want to talk to me."

She looked up at the ceiling in anguish, "And now this happens."

Ziva kept her eyes on her notes in front of her; she couldn't bear to look at the degenerate woman before her, the tears that slid down her cheeks and the remorse that was displayed on her features. The relationship between mother and daughter was too similar to her own between her and her father, it left her wondering if he shared the same regrets Susan was now facing. How would he feel if something happened to her? How would he feel about the situation she was now facing, his first grandchild on the way?

Susan's voice broke through her thoughts, "Do you have any kids?"

Ziva raised her head, startled by the question. She opened her mouth but no words came out, how could she answer that? Was it yes or no? Could she even confess her secret now? Would it be right to lay her own problems on this already overburdened woman? She finally settled for neutrality, "Not yet."

Mrs. Lambert nodded, "When you do, don't make the same mistakes I made. Don't push them away…don't wait too long to reach out…or it will be too late."

The Mossad officer's heart went out to the older woman, "Mrs. Lambert, none of this is your fault."

"I should have been here…"

"You couldn't have known anything like this would happen," Ziva interrupted, "The only person at fault is the one who has taken your daughter," She leveled her eyes with the woman, "and I promise I'll bring her and her baby back."

* * *

Corporal Enrique Ramirez lived in the family district on the base, the three male members of the team made good time getting there since Gibbs was driving and he tended to disregard small matters like speed limits, especially if traffic was a concern. It was pretty hard to talk when Gibbs had his 'no nonsense' expression on so Tony and McGee wisely retreated to their own thoughts; Tony was trying to figure out what was wrong with Ziva. For days she'd been pretty quiet, which was unusual since usually she enjoyed teasing him or playing pranks on McGee. Lately she'd been unusually moody, snapping at him whenever he'd tried to cajole her out of her funk. Her behavior was starting to worry him; did she want out of their relationship?

The thought made his blood run cold. That was the last thing he wanted. He hadn't been this happy since Jeanne; actually it wasn't a stretch to say he had never been this happy. With Jeanne their relationship was clouded by the fact that he knew it would end badly, with Ziva everything seemed to fit into place like a perfect jigsaw puzzle. Was he the only one who felt that way? Up until a couple of days ago he would have said no, Ziva had seemed as happy as he was, but now…

The arrival at Ramirez's home pulled Tony from his thoughts, but that didn't mean he wasn't still curious, "Hey McGee," he said casually, best not let Tom E. Gemcity catch on and inadvertently give him more ammunition for _Tommy_ and _Lisa_, the last thing he wanted to do was give McGee another bestseller, "do you think Ziva's been acting a little strange? Well I mean stranger than normal?"

McGee shrugged, "She's been quiet lately; maybe she's got something on her mind."

_Uh oh_, Tony thought, "Has she talked to you about anything…boyfriends...is she in a relationship that she's tired of…?"

"Hey!" Gibbs called, "Are we investigating a missing person or are we discussing scuttle-butt?"

"On it boss," McGee replied quickly and he and Tony caught up with Gibbs. He glared at the two agents as he rang the door bell. The sound of soft footsteps soon made their way to the door which was opened by young woman of obvious Mexican descent. When she was younger she'd probably been considered beautiful, but stress and problems rather than years had aged her considerably. She looked much older than her twenty-nine years, more like thirty-five or maybe even pushing forty. Her brown eyes were tired, as if she'd been caring a heavy burden only to find out that more weight was to be added.

"Mrs. Ramirez," Gibbs assumed, "NCIS, I'm Special Agent Gibbs, Special Agents DiNozzo and McGee," he gestured to his two teammates, "We need to speak to your husband."

"_Enrique, agentes federales a su_," Marisol Ramirez called for her husband in rapid Spanish. It didn't take long for Enrique to arrive.

Where his wife was losing her youthful beauty it was apparent the Enrique was still in his prime, he had finely chiseled features with dark military cropped hair and chocolate eyes. It wasn't hard to see why some might find it easier to believe Lance Corporal Lambert was a scorned lover, Corporal Ramirez had the looks that turned women's heads…and the uniform didn't hurt.

"Corporal Ramirez," Gibbs remarked as soon as the young man appeared, "NCIS," he flashed his badge, "We here to talk about Lance Corporal Mary Lambert."

Enrique didn't respond to the name with anything more than a slight eyebrow twitch. He turned to his wife, "_Marisol, nos dejan y __llame a nuestro abogado__"_ His tone was sharp and Marisol quickly left the group to call his lawyer per her husband's orders. Gibbs got the feeling that her husband addressed orders a lot.

The Corporal turned back to Gibbs, "What has that bitch said about me now?"

Tony's eyebrows shot to his hairline at Ramirez's sharp words, "What makes you think she's accused you of anything."

"You're here aren't you?" Ramirez replied, "What have I done now, trespassed on her property? Shot her dog? Do you know what that _puta_ has done to me because of her ridiculous accusations?"

"Rape doesn't sound too ridiculous to me," Tony remarked.

"She's _loco_," Ramirez continued to spew venom, "she was always trying to get me alone, trying to start something…"

"Interesting," Gibbs interrupted, "You said that you never had an altercation with her."

"I'm happily married," he continued, "I would never have an affair; I was not interested in Lance Corporal Lambert. So whatever she's said about me is _mierda_!"

"Lance Corporal Lambert hasn't accused you of anything new," Gibbs interrupted.

Ramirez glared at the NCIS agent, "Then why are you here."

"She's missing."

The Corporal seemed surprised by that information at first, then his features relaxed a bit, "She's probably run away because she know that when that paternity test comes back negative everyone will know she's lying."

"Did she give you any reason to think she'd run away?"

"She wasn't the most reliable of Marines," Ramirez told them, "and she was always a lunatic, ask her mother. She'll tell you what a psycho that _puta mentira_ was."

Gibbs was getting annoyed with Ramirez's remarks, his gut was telling him something was up, "Where were you at 2100 yesterday?"

"I was here," Ramriez explained, "I can't go off base without permission because of the charges."

"Who was with you?"

"My wife."

"Anyone else who can verify that?"

Ramirez was getting angrier, "No!" He leveled his eyes with Gibbs, "Are we done here?"

Gibbs nodded, "Yeah sure," Ramirez moved to close the door, "We're done here," he continued, "but we'll finish this conversation at NCIS."

* * *

Ziva was sitting in the squad room alone as the rest of the team had not yet come back from questioning Ramirez. She couldn't deny that she was jealous; she had wanted a chance to meet the bastard face to face. What if he'd tried to run away or better yet tried to fight back, she smiled at the thought of being able to turn her gun on Mary's rapist. A shame the boys got all the fun.

Her fingers trailed idly against the cover of the book on her desk, she'd taken Mary's book of baby names in the hopes that maybe something was hidden in the pages. There was, a list on simple notebook paper of names Mary had like. Joshua, Matthew, Conner, Aaron…the list continued with the meanings next to the names and other information. Some had been crossed out, others like Joshua and Conner and been starred, obviously denoting which ones she liked more.

Ziva smiled at the names, she'd always wanted to name her son Joshua, but she also liked Calev, fitting since she was a spy like the namesake. She'd always wanted to name her daughter after Tali, a fitting tribute to the sister she lost. A Hebrew name would be needed for her child but perhaps Tony would prefer a more American name, she didn't mind but…

She shook her head, no those thoughts were silly to think about at the moment, she shouldn't allow herself to think this way. For all she knew the minute she told Tony she was pregnant he would disappear in a cloud of smoke like those cartoons she saw while flipping threw the channels on Saturday morning.

The elevator dinged and Ziva was greeted by the sounds of her co-workers arguing over what was apparently fast-food take out. It was then that the smell of charbroiled meat and greasy french-fries hit her like a battering ram. Bile rose up in her throat as her normally iron stomach churned, she moaned and placed her now clammy forehead against the cool desk. If she vomited she would never hear the end of it.

"You alright there Ziva?" Tony asked taking a big bite out of his hamburger.

She tried to swallow back the nausea, "I'm fine Tony," she tried to talk without breathing through her nose, anything to stop smelling the food her co-workers had. "I found some files on Marisol Ramirez when she went to the hospital; it was suspected her husband had beaten her."

Tony nodded, "Make sure Gibbs gets them; he'll want them for interrogation."

"He's bringing Corporal Ramirez here?!"

"Yep, Gibbs is letting him simmer in Interrogation, give him an hour and he'll be ready like a tasty stew."

Ziva groaned again at the food references, the smell was getting worse. "What have you got there Ziva?" McGee asked noticing the book on her desk.

"Mary's…list of…baby names," Ziva choked out. _Don't vomit, don't vomit_ she kept repeating to herself silently begging any deity above to end her nausea.

"Mary? Since when did you call Lance Corporal Lambert, Mary?" Tony asked stepping in front of her desk. He took another bite of hamburger right in front of Ziva and that sent her over the edge. Chime rose from her stomach and Ziva could feel it sneaking up her throat, with a gagging sound she flew from her chair and was across the room heading for the ladies room.

Unfortunately for her Gibbs caught saw her fleeing, "What's wrong with David?"

"It looks like she's on the losing end of a stomach virus," Tony remarked, a little worry edging his voice.

"I've never seen her turn green like that before," McGee remarked, he saw Tony's expression, "but it's probably nothing," he quickly agreed.

Gibbs didn't say anything; he just looked at Ziva's now empty desk with an unreadable expression on his face.

* * *

Rock music blasted through the doors of Abby's lab. The Goth forensic scientist was hunched over the table in her lab, looking at the set of knives taken from Mary Lambert's home. She picked up a small piece of plastic caught in the grip of the handle, "Hello, what have we here?"

"What?"

Abby jumped and whirled around to see Gibbs' smiling face, "That's it I'm putting a bell around your neck."

Gibbs grinned, "It won't work."

She laughed knowing full well that he was right, "So what can I do for you Gibbs?"

"Tell me what you have."

"What makes you think I have something?"

He gave her a knowing look and revealed a Caf-Pow which he dangled over her head, Abby lunged for it but he pulled it out of her reach, "No fair Gibbs."

"Results then reward."

She smiled, "Alright, I got the results on the blood in the bathtub, a match to Lance Corporal Lambert. There was a lot of it so I don't think she cut herself shaving her legs."

"What else."

Abby walked quickly over to the knives on the table and Gibbs followed, "I looked at the knives you guys brought from her house, what intrigued me was that some of them were wet, a little unusual since from the pictures Ziva took I know her dishes were still in the sink."

"That's not much."

"I'm not done yet," Abby continued, "there was nothing on the blades but when I took off the handles I found this," she showed him two handle-less knives, both had reddish brown stains. "I took a sample and found three different donors, one belonged to Lance Corporal Lambert, the other two are unknowns."

"Her killers?"

"One might be," Abby admitted, "but the second is definitely not. How do you know that you ask? Well I'll tell you Gibbs, there are seven common alleles with one of the samples to Lance Corporal Lambert and the DNA belongs to a male so that means it is either her father, or her brother or her…"

"Son," Gibbs interrupted looking at the DNA profile, "They killed her and her baby."

"Looks like it," Abby admitted, "I'm still running the DNA of the unknown. I'll tell you if I get a hit."

"That's good work Abs, run the baby's DNA against Corporal Ramirez, I want to know if he really is the father."

"There's more," Abby said quickly, "before you snuck in here like the master spy you are, I was taking one more look at knives and found this stuck in the grip," she showed him a small piece of plastic underneath the microscope, "I haven't tested it but I'm pretty certain it's your everyday variety garbage bag, a little unusual to be stuck in knife grip so I'm thinking they wrapped her body in a garbage bag."

He pressed the Caf-Pow in her hand and kissed her on the cheek, "Thanks Abs."

"Always here to help my sexy silver fox!" She called afterwards and took a sip of her Caf-Pow.

Heaven.

* * *

"You think the guy really raped Lance Corporal Lambert?" McGee asked Tony, they were standing in the observation room watching as Ramirez conversed with his attorney in Interrogation.

"Absolutely."

"Really? There wasn't much evidence," McGee pointed out, "what makes you think he's guilty."

"Look at the guy, he has on Gucci shoes with tassels, an Armani tie, I bet that lapel pin is solid gold," Tony explained.

McGee was confused, "Corporal Ramirez isn't wearing a tie!"

Tony smacked him on the back of the head, "I wasn't talking about Ramirez I was talking about his lawyer, that suit has to cost three thousand bucks, he's dripping with money."

"What does this have to do with whether or not Ramirez is innocent?"

"The more expensive the lawyer the more guilty the suspect," Tony explained, "It's a linear thing." He stared hard at Ramirez, "This is going to be good. Gibbs hates lawyers and this guy is scum, I bet Gibbs pulls out his sig."

McGee didn't get a chance to reply; Gibbs walked through the door into Interrogation and took a seat across from Ramirez and his lawyer James Goodman.

"I've advised my client to remain silent," Goodman told Gibbs.

"Your client has been charged with rape and is now suspected in a missing person's case," Gibbs explained, "I think he'd better talk."

"I didn't do anything!" Ramirez exclaimed.

"Enrique," Goodman told his client, "he wants you to get angry."

Gibbs didn't say anything, just studies Ramirez for a long moment. "She was beautiful wasn't she, Lance Corporal Mary Lambert. She was young, good figure, blonde hair, blue eyes; it wasn't hard watching her work I'm sure." Ramirez was still silent but he was clearly uncomfortable with Gibbs' words, "She was under your command, day in and day out you watched her, you listened as the other men in your command talked about her, made lewd references, did you join in? Did you fantasize about her?"

Gibbs shrugged "It's understandable, healthy even. She was beautiful and we both know your wife isn't as young as she used to be, she isn't as cooperative as you might like, and that makes you angry." He pulled open a file and laid some pictures in front of Ramirez, "Is that why you hit her? Did it make you feel in control because you couldn't control your urges anymore?"

One by one pictures of Marisol Ramirez, black eyes and cut lip, were shown to Ramirez. He looked at the pictures with disgust and disinterest. He looked up at Gibbs, "I didn't hit my wife, she fell down the stairs."

Gibbs kept his face blank, "That's what she said."

Goodman intervened, "No charges were laid against my client, there was no evidence to indicate spousal abuse and this has no bearing on Lance Corporal Lambert."

Gibbs didn't even look at Goodman, his eyes remained on Ramirez, "What was it? What did Lance Corporal Lambert do that sent you over the edge? Did she bend down to pick up something? Was her uniform just a little too low? Was another Marine's comment too explicit?" Gibbs shook his head, "It doesn't matter what it was, but you just had to have her. You followed her home, no one was around, you were her CO so you were in charge; you were in control. Did she fight you? Did that make it more exciting?"

"That's enough Agent Gibbs." Goodman interrupted.

"You must have been so smug, you frightened her enough. She had nothing on you, it must have stopped you cold when you found out she was pregnant," Gibbs continued with his monologue.

"Agent Gibbs…"

"Every day crept closer and closer to the due date, you're less sure, you're lies are starting to show. The only way to be absolutely certain is to make that baby disappear." Gibbs turned his cold blue eyes on Ramirez, "You know that absolute control of someone is not rape…it's murder. Did you like that feeling when you killed Lance Corporal Lambert."

"We're done here Agent Gibbs," Goodman said standing up, "we came here to provide information not to be interrogated by your assumptions." He turned to his client, "Come on Enrique, we're leaving."

Ramirez didn't move to leave for a moment, just continued to glare daggers at Gibbs. "You'll be in here again Corporal," Gibbs told him, "I'm certain."

Ramirez stood up quickly and followed his lawyer out the door.

* * *

Ziva was humiliated; her inability to control her stomach had resulted in her lying on the bathroom floor after vomiting for what seemed like an hour. Now that she'd emptied anything she'd had in her, Ziva was trying to keep some crackers down with a little ginger ale. It was a good thing Tony wasn't there, he'd probably be making a silly comment and she wasn't sure she could restrain herself from stabbing him with his letter opener today. She didn't know how many times she'd cursed Tony in between bouts of vomiting.

But she couldn't blame him for her bad mood entirely, Abby had told her about what she'd found in the evidence from Mary's home. She hadn't really doubted the blood in the shower drain was Mary's, more like she'd hoped it wasn't. But what she hadn't been prepared for was the baby's DNA being found on the knives. For once she'd been glad to be alone when she heard that information; she didn't want anyone to see her tears.

It was horrible to kill an innocent woman. It was unimaginable to kill a baby who hadn't even begun to live. Mary had wanted that baby, she'd had a room ready, was picking out names, she was already imagining holding him in her arms. All of it cut short before it had even begun.

Unconsciously Ziva pressed a hand to her stomach, _I want you_, she spoke to the baby in her mind;_ I can't deny that anymore. I don't know how I'll do this but I will…even if it has to be alone._

She looked up to see two men coming from the direction of Interrogation, one she didn't recognize but his expensive dress and unhappy expression made her certain he was a lawyer, and the fact that Corporal Ramirez was following him implied he was Ramirez's lawyer. She couldn't help but stare at the man she considered the most vile thing on the planet.

Ramirez obviously noticed her; a sly grin came over his face and his eyes trailed up and down her body. She was well aware what he was doing, it made her sick to her stomach and that wasn't just morning sickness. She glared at him, "You like what you see?"

He stopped and smiled obviously thinking she was flirting, "Yes."

She stood up and walked towards him with a cold expression, "Did you like what you saw when you were with Mary Lambert?"

Enrique froze, he hadn't thought she was involved with his case, Ziva's smile dropped a few degrees colder, "Is that what you did with her, flirt? And she rejected you; I'll bet that made you feel…what's the word? Emasculated?" she smiled wider, "We'll see how emasculated you feel when you're doing twenty-five to life at Bethesda, the men there will let you know how Mary felt when you raped her…unless of course you like it."

Ramirez obviously didn't like being put in those terms, "_Mujer loco estúpido_," he insulted her cruelly.

She glared back at him, "I feel sorry for Mary's son, to share genes with a _cerdo maloliente._"

Apparently comparing him to a pig was the worst insult she could give, Ramirez charged forward and tried to take swing at her. She easily grabbed his arm and pulled him back up against the desk, not being gentle at all.

All chaos broke loose as Gibbs, Tony and McGee rushed forward once the confrontation took place, Goodman was shouting and other NCIS agents pointed shouted at the fight. Ziva leaned in close to Ramirez, "I am not Mary, you _cannot_ control me!"

"Let him go Ziva!" Gibbs shouted at her, "let him go!"

Tony came up and grabbed her shoulder, "Ziva," he told her quietly. She glared at Tony but finally released Ramirez. The Corporal glared at Ziva maliciously and began swearing rapidly in Spanish, his lawyer stepped forward, "I ought to press charges against your agent Gibbs."

"Get him out of here before we charge _him_ with attempting to assault a federal agent!" Gibbs shot back. Goodman wisely led his client away but not without sending another withering look at Ziva.

Her eyes remained on Tony, the only person who knew how to keep her calm. She wanted to scream, she wanted to cry; she wanted to rip Ramirez's face off. No one knew why she was so involved; no one could see how she could barely keep herself together. She wasn't a fool she knew she'd screwed up.

Gibbs stepped forward, "If you ever assault a suspect…"

"He was going to…"

"I don't care!" Gibbs shouted, ", if you ever interfere with an investigation like that again I will send you back to Israel. Is that understood?!"

Ziva leveled her eyes at him, "Yes."

_*foof*_

* * *

A/N: What did you think? Again I'm sorry for the Spanish if it's wrong, if it's right then thank Google Translate LOL. New chapter will come soon unless my professors decide to be mean again.


	3. All That Remains

Disclaimer: I own nothing

A/N: Wow everyone really liked Ziva putting Ramirez in his place, I know it's always nice when the characters actually get to knock the bad guys around. Everyone is also getting anxious for Tony to find out about the baby, all I can say is he will when the story allows it but not a moment too soon :-p

I really liked writing this next chap, it has my favorite scene in it so read and enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 3: All That Remains

Leon Vance stared at the two agents in front of his desk with and angry and disappointed look, fortunately Ziva and Gibbs were made of stronger stuff, neither of them crumbled though there was a hint of shame in Ziva's eyes.

"Officer David, there are many things an investigator must do, follow chain of evidence, check every lead…not assault a suspect in the squad room," he eyed her angrily, "Apparently you're having problems with the latter."

"I received a call from Corporal Ramirez's lawyer," Vance continued, "it seems he wants to press charges against the agency."

"Corporal Ramirez was moving to attack me," Ziva told him, "I was defending myself."

"I'm aware of what transpired," Vance told her, "I'm also aware that you were having words with Ramirez before he made a move, that you insulted him."

Ziva didn't respond and that spoke volumes of it self, "If this was the first time something like this occurred," Vance explained, "I might have been more lenient, but three years ago you were investigated in the death of another suspect, Brian Dempsey."

"Ducky said he died of natural causes," Ziva reminded him.

"Dr. Mallard did say that," Vance agreed, "but it is only his word."

It was Gibbs' turn to step in, "She was cleared Leon; she hasn't harmed a suspect since."

"Until now," Vance finished.

"I did not hurt Corporal Ramirez," Ziva reminded him, silently she added _unfortunately._

"I never said you did."

Gibbs turned to Ziva, "Ziva, why don't you go outside." She gave glanced at Gibbs but one look at his eyes confirmed that he was on her side, and then she followed his orders.

Vance waited till she left the room, "She's too involved with this case."

"Let me worry about that," Gibbs told him, "she's my agent."

"And I'm wondering if you can handle her," Vance explained, "we can't have her attacking suspects for no reason."

"Ziva always has a reason," Gibbs said.

"If you can't keep her under control…"

"Are you questioning my leadership Leon?" Gibbs asked, obviously not happy with Vance's intentions. Gibbs looked him in the eye, "What she did was stupid, but she _was_ defending herself."

Leon leveled his eyes at Gibbs, not particularly happy with the situation or having his hands tied in this manner, "If I ever hear about something like this again…"

"You won't," Gibbs assured him.

"Good," Vance sat back down at his desk as Gibbs walked towards the door, "And find out what's wrong with her."

Gibbs just smiled as he closed the door, "I've got a pretty good idea."

* * *

Ducky's morgue was unusually vacant so Dr. Mallard was using the quiet time to catch up on the always high mountain of paperwork. Jimmy wasn't in the room for the moment and that was what Tony was counting on. Ducky looked up from his desk the moment the Autopsy doors opened. "Ah Tony, what brings you down here?"

"Can't a guy just come down to chat with a friend?" Tony asked; he wasn't very good at lying so it wasn't hard for Ducky to see right through that façade.

"What's the matter Tony?" He asked his voice serious; he stood up and walked over to the young Agent.

"Nothing," Tony told him again, he paused for a moment, "It's this case."

"Yes I heard you were trying to find a missing Lance Corporal."

Tony sighed, "That's not the problem…something's wrong with Ziva; she's too involved. Something's bothering her and she won't tell me…and it's getting her in trouble."

"You're referring to her altercation with the suspect upstairs," Ducky inferred.

"I forgot how quickly word travels around here," Tony remarked lightly.

Ducky smiled, "Yes well, it seems to me that Ziva has found some common ground between herself and the missing Lance Corporal. She feels vulnerable, just like Lance Corporal Lambert must have felt when her commanding officer attacked her all those months ago. It's why Ziva fought with him, she wants retribution."

Tony rubbed his eyes, "I know, what I don't know is why. She never met this woman; they have absolutely _nothing_ in common…"

"That you know of," Ducky reminded him, "Ziva has many secrets, perhaps one of those has a connection to Lance Corporal Lambert."

"Like what?!" Tony asked angrily, he shook his head, "no she would have told me about it."

"And why is that?" Ducky asked curiously. He eyed Tony with an intuitive glance, "I had a conversation with Ziva once; she had the same attitude that you have now."

Tony knew what conversation Ducky was referring to, not long after he and Ziva had gotten together they had talked about how long they'd had feelings for each other. When they started realizing their friendly attraction was more than just _friendly_. Ziva had told him about that tequila night with Ducky before La Grenouille was killed.

_"I don't monitor Tony."_

_"Oh, yes, you do, my dear, like a mother with her toddler"_

_"That's a good description."_

_"Or a woman with a wayward lover."_

Ducky narrowed his eyes at Tony, "Is something going on between you two?"

Tony forced what he thought sounded like a natural laugh, "That's a good one Ducky, you should talk to McGee, maybe you could help co-author his next book." He tried to change the subject, "Look, I just want to know what's wrong with Ziva, I was hoping that your shrink skills could shed some light on the situation."

Ducky was still studying him, "If you want to know what's bothering Ziva, I suggest you ask her."

Tony gave him an incredulous look, "Ask her? She doesn't usually give me a straight answer…that or she lets me wonder what the answer is."

Ducky smiled, "Yes Tony, Ziva may be a _very_ good liar, but at this moment she is at her most emotional. And it is at times like these when the truth comes out."

* * *

When Tony returned to the Squad Room Ziva and Gibbs were sitting at their desks, an awkward silence rested between them. Obviously the conversation with Vance hadn't gone too well, but since Ziva wasn't packing up her things Tony figured she hadn't been asked to leave. He caught her eye for a moment, trying to read what was going on behind them but she looked away quickly. Now she wasn't just avoiding talking with him but eye contact as well, and he thought things couldn't get any worse.

McGee was oblivious to the tension between his teammates; he was too busy following a new lead. If he was right about this then he might be in Gibbs' good graces for a little while and it was always safer to be on his boss' good side, no matter how short a time it might be.

"I think I have something boss," he said finally stepping away from his desk and putting a picture of man's driver's license on the plasma. "Grayson Samuels," McGee continued as Gibbs looked up, "he's a civilian who works for a shipping company in Davison, Virginia."

Gibbs looked at the man on the screen, he had longish brown hair and normal brown eyes; he seemed average in everyway. "What does this have to do with the case McGee?"

"Well I was looking through Lance Corporal Lambert's files and I found that she'd filed a restraining order against Samuels," McGee explained, "she claimed that Samuels approached her at her house and demanded that she drop the charges against Corporal Ramirez. She claimed that Samuels threatened her if she didn't do as he said."

"So you're thinking Samuels took it a step farther," Tony inferred, "all to help his friend out."

"People have done less." McGee remarked.

Ziva shook her head, "No, Ramirez did it."

Gibbs eyed Ziva, "Yes but at NCIS we cover _all _angles, not just the ones we like." He turned to McGee, "that's good work McGee."

Timmy smiled, "I've got his address in case you want to talk to him."

Gibbs didn't reply, just grabbed his weapon and jacket, "Keep it up McGee, DiNozzo get back to work and go through her phone records, David with me."

Ziva was stunned by his last statement, she would have thought that he would have wanted her doing desk work as a form of punishment for her altercation with Ramirez. She grabbed her own equipment before he changed his mind and ran towards the elevator before the doors closed.

There was a few seconds of renewed awkward silence as the elevator began to move downwards, Ziva choice to break that silence, "I just…I am sorry for what happened earlier Gibbs." She peeked at him from the corner of her eye, he was still staring straight ahead, "I do not know what came over me…I just can not seem to break away from this case."

Gibbs didn't respond, instead he reached over and stopped the elevator. _Uh oh,_ Ziva thought, now it was Gibbs' turn to lecture her on irresponsibility and hampering investigations. Not that she didn't deserve it but if anyone could make her feel worse it was Gibbs. She wasn't prepared for his question.

"How far along are you?"

She felt like every part of her body suddenly became sheathed in ice, she could have sworn her heart stopped for a moment.

He knew.

If there was one thing Mossad taught her besides how to effectively kill it was how to believably lie. So she gave a half-hearted chuckle, "What?" she asked trying to sound amused as well as confused.

When she turned to look at Gibbs he was giving her his famous stare, he meant no-nonsense and he could see right through lies. He always had and he always could. "Ziva," he said calmly with a gentle tone, he said her name to remind her lies were useless, it was the time for the truth.

She looked down at the floor, "I don't know," she admitted, "I only found out about an hour before we were called in," she flipped through the mental calendar in her head, "My best guess is six weeks…maybe eight."

Gibbs nodded his gaze never wavering, he simply spoke, "You haven't told DiNozzo."

She swallowed but wasn't going to give in that easily, "Why would it matter to him?"

"He is the father," it wasn't a question but a statement. He not only knew she was pregnant but that she'd been seeing Tony. How did he know these things?!

"How did you know that?" she asked not hiding the surprise in her voice. Gibbs didn't respond but gave her a look that revealed nothing and everything, "I forgot," she remarked, "you know everything yes?" She looked away shaking her head at her and Tony's now useless attempts to hide their relationship, "You probably know how long we've been seeing each other."

"Six months."

So that was it, everything was out in the open, everything they'd been trying to hide had been unnecessary in the end, and now when he was finally told what he already knew, Gibbs was silent. "So that is it?" Ziva asked, "No head slap, no lectures on becoming involved with your partner and breaking rule twelve?"

"Do you want one?" Gibbs asked with an amused expression.

Ziva leveled her eyes with his, "We care for each other Gibbs, this is more than just sex, it is more than either of us has ever had before."

Gibbs sighed, "Partners dating never works,

"It will this time."

"You're too emotionally involved with each other, if things get messy you won't use your heads and mistakes will be made."

Ziva glared at him, "Tony and I have been together for six months, in that time together have we ever done anything to compromise the integrity of this agency."

He studied her for a long moment; then his eyes softened, "No." He hit the start button and the elevator began to move again.

It was over and Ziva had won that argument, she and Tony may not have Gibbs' blessing but at least he wouldn't use this against them. Gibbs spoke again, "You should tell DiNozzo, he has a right to know."

Ziva shook her head, "I don't know if he's ready for this, I don't know if _I_ am ready for this."

"You'll do fine," Gibbs told her with a smile, the elevator dinged and the doors opened. Ziva began to walk through the door but Gibbs grabbed her arm, "One more thing, I should have said this before," his face was unreadable but there was a sparkle in his eyes, "Congratulations."

* * *

The two agents arrived at a small shipping facility in Davison; an employee pointed them in the direction of Grayson Samuels. The man in question was busy working near an assembly line, "Grayson Samuels," Gibbs called out.

Samuels looked up, "Yeah?"

Gibbs flashed his badge, "Special Agent Gibbs, Officer David, NCIS."

Samuels looked confused, "What do you want?"

"We're here for Lance Corporal May Lambert," Gibbs explained.

Samuels' eyes flashed anger; he obviously knew that name, "What's that bitch done now?"

"Gone missing," Gibbs told him, "You know anything about it?"

Samuels' mouth shut, his eyes grew wide when he heard the news, "She's missing?" he asked, at Gibbs' nod he shook his head, "I didn't have anything to do with it."

"Really?" Ziva asked, "Then why did she have a restraining order against you?"

Samuels sighed, "Enrique is my friend, I know he's not capable of raping someone," he continued, "Lambert had a thing for him…most of the women on the base did, but she was obsessed!" His anger was rising now, "She cried rape because she couldn't have him, I don't know who got her pregnant, but it wasn't Enrique."

"The charges against him were destroying his career," Samuels continued, "I just wanted to talk to her, to try and get her to stop lying…I lost my temper."

_Grayson Samuels waited outside of Lance Corporal Lambert's house, he approached her when she went to get her mail from the mailbox._

_"Do you know what you're doing?" He asked angrily, "You're destroying his life with your lies!"_

_"I don't know you!" Mary shouted turning away, her hand instinctively covering her stomach, protecting her unborn son, "Stay away from me!"_

Ziva raised an eyebrow, "Report says you threatened her."

_"I'll call the police!"Mary shouted running towards her house._

_"I'll kill you, you bitch!"_

"I might have said that I'd kill her, but I didn't mean it!" He said quickly, "I was just angry; I just wanted her to stop lying so that Enrique could go on with his life."

"Except now she's missing," Gibbs told him, "that makes you a suspect."

"I didn't do it!"

"Where were you at 2100 yesterday?" Gibbs asked.

Grayson looked confused, "What's 2100?"

"Nine, o'clock," Ziva replied smoothly, "at night."

Samuels smiled, "Well then I'm cleared," he explained, "I was at a bachelor party last night, my brother's getting married. I can show you the pictures."

"You do that," Gibbs told him.

"We will also want the phone numbers of the other people at the party," Ziva piped in, "to corroborate your story."

"No problem."

A few minutes later Ziva and Gibbs made their way back the car, neither of them fully satisfied with the interview but the profilers in them told them that Samuels was telling the truth. Gibbs noticed a look of sadness in Ziva's eyes.

"What's the matter now?" he asked a hint of exasperation in his voice.

Ziva turned to look up at him, "I was just thinking," her eyes strayed to the distance, "Ramirez has his wife, he has Samuels and a dozen other friends all there to testify that he was a good guy…Mary had no one," she explained. "She was not speaking with her mother; most of the people in her unit were men that she was not close to, her phone records show she did not call many people, none for extended periods of time." Ziva pursed her lips, "how desperately she must have wanted that baby, then she would have someone to love her."

She looked back up at Gibbs, "She was alone Gibbs."

Gibbs wasn't a fool; he knew Ziva was relating to this case for more than one reason, not the least of which was her own pregnancy. He knew when she was talking about Lambert…she was thinking about hers own situation as well, "You're not alone Ziva."

Ziva shook her head, "I do not know how much involved Tony will be."

"I wasn't just talking about DiNozzo," Gibbs explained, "Me, Ducky, Abby, McGee and I wouldn't count out DiNozzo…we're all going to be here for you."

Ziva smiled softly, for the first time it reached her eyes, "Thank you Gibbs."

* * *

McGee and Tony were still hard at work in the Squad Room when Gibbs and Ziva arrived back from the interview. They both looked up as their two teammates made their way back to their desks, "Samuels had an alibi?" McGee asked.

"Air tight," Gibbs replied sitting back down.

"Did you find anything," Ziva asked hopeful.

"Not unless you count Lambert's obsession with jungle themed baby furniture," Tony answered, "she must have ordered thirty different items off Amazon."

Ziva sighed, "So we have nothing on Ramirez."

"I wouldn't say that just yet," Abby said excited as she ran into the Squad Room, a three hundred mega-watt smile on her face.

"You have something Abs?" Gibbs asked, knowing the answer already.

"I sure do, and you are going to love me."

"We already do Abby," Tony replied with a teasing smiled.

"No this time you are going to mega love me, super love me…is there anything bigger than super? What ever, you are going to _so_ love me!" Abby squealed.

"Just tell us Abs,' Gibbs interrupted before the love fest continued.

"I ran Corporal Ramirez's DNA against the DNA we found on the knife belonging to Lance Corporal Lambert's baby…it's a match. Corporal Ramirez was the father."

"So he did rape her," McGee inferred.

"That or had an affair with her," Tony reminded him.

"It doesn't matter," Gibbs interrupted, "he said he never touched her. He lied…we have enough for a warrant."

Gibbs grabbed his gun and jacket, "Gear up and gas the truck, we're searching Ramirez's house." He stopped long enough to kiss Abby on the cheek, "Great work Abs put a Caf-Pow on my tab."

"Just doing my job," Abby called after him smiling.

Ziva was on Gibbs' heels, "Are we bringing him in for questioning?"

"I'm bringing him in, you will search his house," Gibbs told her, "I don't want you near him."

"Understood," Ziva replied smoothly. But she smiled; they were one step closer to catching this bastard

* * *

The NCIS truck pulling up to the Ramirez home sent the neighbors outside to investigate; the team ignored the stares and walked up to the home to speak to their suspect. Again it was Marisol who opened the door, "Mrs. Ramirez," Gibbs spoke with a serious tone, "we have a warrant to search the premises."

"A warrant?" she asked looking at the paper in her hands.

"We would also like to speak to your husband, where is he?" Gibbs asked looking around.

"He is not here," she replied her English a little broken.

Gibbs stepped closer, a full on glare in his eyes, "Where is he?!"

Ziva wasn't watching the altercation; her eyes were looking down the hallway and out the large kitchen windows which framed the backyard…and the smoke rising from a fire pit outside.

"Gibbs!" she called and rushed down the hallway just as the rest of the team caught sight at what caught her eye.

They rushed out the backdoor leaving Marisol alone and confused, Ziva and Gibbs were the first to reach the fire pit but all members smelled the sickening odor of burned flesh long before they saw anything. Smoke tendrils reached from the sky from the charred remains of wood and cardboard boxes…and something else.

Something that on sight made Ziva turn her head away, blinking tears from her eyes.

Something that made Gibbs whisper, "My god."

Because nestled between two pieces of charred firewood blackened skull peered up at them, grinning with the terrifying smile of death.

*foof*

* * *

A/N: Call me crazy but I'm looking forward to writing the next chapter, mostly because it deals with bones and I'm a Forensic Anthropology major (yipee bones, I love bones!) but I'll try to keep myself from getting too technical, I doubt anyone else would understand the different scientific terms for metacarpals.

As for this last chap, my favorite scenes were the ones between Ziva and Gibbs, the silver fox always knows everything LOL.


	4. When All is Revealed

Disclaimer: I own nothing so don't sue me

A/N: I'm so sorry for the wait but it is getting towards the end of the semester and that means tests which means I have to study. But I made some free time and finally finished this chapter because this is the big chapter where everything happens. Not just the scene that everyone has been waiting for (hint hint) but also the one that is chock full of anthropology which as I said is my passion.

Do you doubt me? Well I'll prove it to you.

Everybody remember way back in Season 3 in the episode Silver War, the one where Ziva officially joins the team? If you can recall Ducky spoke of a case where a Civil War Colonel's grave had been broken in to in which a corpse was found without it's head, and since so little of it had decomposed they opened a murder investigation only to find out when tested that the corpse was really the Civil War Colonel? That is a real case conducted by Dr. Bill Bass, the father of Modern Forensic Anthropology. The colonel was Colonel William Shy and his embalming had gone so well that Dr. Bass had assumed he was only a few weeks dead when he was only abou 150 years off!!!! You can read it yourself in his book Death's Acre, Dr. Bass is the scientist that started the infamous Body Farm

Needless to say when Ducky told that story I started screaming and squealing!!! My mom and sister laughed once I explained why I was so excited. Yep I'm a crazy anthropology nut that loves everything to do with the subject, I've met Dr. Bass twice!!!!

I wanted to tell you guys that little story and explain why I can tell you that the information regarding bones is correct because I got it straight from the horse's mouth and my own textbooks. Again I tried to dumb things down because I know most readers aren't as well versed in anatomy as I am.

If any of you have actually read all of this thanks, I hope you guys enjoy the story.

* * *

Chapter 4: When All is Revealed

The crime scene tape surrounded the Ramirez property, gawkers and nosy neighbors surrounded the perimeter as they tried to catch a glimpse at what was going on inside and in the backyard. Others took a more direct route and began to annoyingly harass the law enforcement officers and NCIS agents.

The real action was taking place in the backyard, Gibbs and his team searched the area for more clues. Tony was sketching the area while McGee was inside questioning Marisol, Gibbs was currently trying to track down Ducky and Palmer and Ziva was tacking pictures of the scene…in theory. Sometimes she would set the lens on the camera and end up staring at the scorched remains of the Lance Corporal she'd been searching for. She was grateful that the other members of her team were busy; they didn't notice her pained expression or the disappointment she felt in herself. She'd failed, it was as simple as that, she'd gotten here too late and now Mary was dead. She would never be able to put on her uniform and serve her country nor would she ever get to hold her baby for the first time.

And her baby would never take a single breath.

That thought was the most crippling of all. No one could ever be as innocent as an unborn child, no one could be a truer victim and yet Corporal Ramirez's cruelty took both mother and child from the world.

Quickly Ziva brushed away some tears that spilled down her cheeks, now was not the time to mourn the dead.

Ducky and Palmer finally arrived, pushing their way through the throng of curious onlookers. "Sorry Agent Gibbs," Palmer said quickly, "Traffic was backed up."

Gibbs didn't respond with more than a nod, Ducky took the initiative, "Well Jethro, where are my services needed?"

"This way Ducky," Gibbs led him towards the fire-pit in the yard where there was still a little smoke rising from the cooling ashes.

As Ducky walked closer to the pit he saw the skull peeking from the smoldering remains of branches, a femur bone lay near it along with the metacarpal bones and phalanges of a hand. "Good Lord," Ducky uttered aloud, "Sometimes I forget how cruel our species can be."

"Yeah," Gibbs agreed, "but something like this always comes along to remind us."

"Well then my dear," Ducky spoke to the bones lying in front of him, "I promise that I'll give you utmost care when you're with me, hopefully that will atone for something."

Gibbs didn't say anything but respectfully remained silent, Ziva silently thanked Ducky for his kindness, if she ever had any thoughts herself about the maliciousness of the human race Ducky and the rest of her companions were always there to prove that there were opposite ends to the spectrum as well.

"Well Mr. Palmer," Ducky spoke to his assistant now, "lets see if we can get her out of there, but be careful the bones are undoubtedly fragile."

Jimmy grinned, "It's a good thing the fire wasn't too hot, otherwise we'd be left with ash."

"An interesting assumption Mr. Palmer but incorrect, even at the most prestigious crematoriums only the soft tissue is reduced to ash, most of the bone remains intact and identifiable."

"So how do they burn them then?" Jimmy asked his curiosity always getting the better of him.  
"They crush them Mr. Palmer," Ducky explained and a light came to his eyes, "this reminds me of a case at Scotland yard when I had to identify the remains of a recently cremated…"

"Ducky," Gibbs interrupted quickly, "do we have a time of death."

"Look here Jethro," Ducky pointed at some of the partially excavated remains, "do you think I'll find a liver here?"

Gibbs chuckled, "Can you give me anything then?"

"Well based from the fact that some soft tissue is still clinging to the bones I'd say the body was burning for several hours at least, most likely with the use of an accelerant like gasoline, I'm sure Abby will identify it back at the lab."

Ducky looked over the skull carefully, "I won't be able to positively identify the remains until I compare the dental records but I may be able to give you a general idea of the deceased."

"What do you see Duck?"

"Well you can see here," Ducky pointed to above the eye orbits, "there is not a massive brow ridge, instead there are sharp edges above the eye sockets, that leads me to believe the victim is female. The pelvis," he now pointed to the large hip bones, "confirms this as the innominate bone is wider and the pubic bone longer than that of a male. Female hip bones form an oval shaped opening to allow childbirth, in males it is more heart shaped."

Ducky returned from the skull, "The cranial sutures are clearly visible and not fully fused; this leads me to believe you're looking at a female approximately eighteen to twenty-five years old."

"There is no prognathism evident in her mandible and teeth," Ducky explained, "her skull is orthognathic, flat, this is a clear indicator that she is more than likely Caucasian."

Ziva sighed; she'd heard every word, "That fits Mary's description."

"Yes," Ducky agreed sadly, "but as I said I won't no positively until I compare her dental records." He looked over at the rest of the burning rubble, "I'll need to have all of this brought back to the lab, if this is indeed Lance Corporal Lambert than her child's bones are probably mixed up in there somewhere."

A ragged breath that hinted at tears from Ziva caught Gibbs's attention, he turned to look at her and but her attention was still on the skull, "I'll go take some pictures of the house," Ziva said quickly pretending the scratch an itch but Gibbs saw the tear trickling down her cheek, "I can't take much more of the smell."

Neither Gibbs nor Ducky were fooled by her disguise but they waited until she'd walked out of earshot, "Poor girl," Ducky remarked, "It never gets any easier when one gets emotionally involved."

"She'll be fine Duck," Gibbs assured him, "she just has her own problems to deal with."

"And I'm sure you know what they are," Ducky guessed astutely but the old Gibbs stare told him that he wasn't going to drag the truth out of Gibbs anytime soon.

McGee and Tony came walking towards their boss, "I got the statement from Mrs. Ramirez and reference samples of her DNA and fingerprints," McGee told him, "she says her husband told her was just going to be burning firewood in the backyard."

"She's saying the aroma of burning flesh didn't tip her off?" Tony asked and rolled his eyes, "she knew what was going on."

Gibbs didn't reply to his senior field agent, "Where is she saying her husband is?"

"She says that he told her he was going to the store, she called his cell phone but he's not answering, she doesn't know where he is."

"Convenient," Tony remarked, "he skips town just as we find a burning body in his backyard, and I'm not buying the wife's story. She knows where he is or knows where he might be."

McGee nodded, "So should we bring her in?"

Gibbs didn't reply for a moment, he was staring at Marisol Ramirez. She was calmly looking out the window at the chaos in her backyard, she wasn't in hysterics but she didn't seem to have the mantle of a guilty person either. She seemed afraid, afraid they would uncover something else, something she was hiding.

"No," Gibbs finally spoke, "we'll keep an agent watching her to tell us if she leaves but for now, she's free."

Both Tony and McGee exchanged confused looks, "Why?" Tony finally asks.

"She knows something," Gibbs finally admitted, his eyes still trained on Marisol, "and I want to know what she's hiding. We'll keep tabs on her; if her husband contacts her then we can bring him in."

* * *

A few hours later the team was back at the squad room sorting through the evidence they'd uncovered at the crime scene and waiting for Ducky and Abby to give them results. There was a silent acknowledgment that no one was going home, this was sure to be an all nighter.

"What do we know?" Gibbs asked his team aloud, he stood before the plasma looking at the picture of Lance Corporal Lambert and one of Corporal Ramirez side by side.

"Corporal Ramirez is missing," Tony replied, "No hits on the BOLO yet, he's Hispanic so he's probably heading to Mexico."

"It'd be a smart move," McGee agreed, "the Mexican government doesn't like to extradite their citizens."

"They like murderers a lot less," Tony remarked.

"Yeah but either way the death penalty would be off the table."

"No good enough," Ziva spoke finally, "that bastard deserves to die."

Gibbs shot a glance a Ziva, "She's right, we need to find Ramirez now, and he's not going to leave this country on my watch."

"That's easier said than done," Tony shot back, a quick head slap to the back of the head, "but we can do it!" he corrected quickly with a wince, "if I don't get brain damage first," he mumbled to himself.

Gibbs turned to McGee, "McGee, look up Ramirez's friends, family, poker buddies, find out if anyone can get him out the country."

He now focused his attention on Tony, "Check up on his calls, who did he call after he left interrogation?"

Ziva was next but to her surprise her assignment was relatively simple, "You help Tony with phone calls, see if you can match them to any of McGee's people."

With that Gibbs strode forcefully to the elevator leaving Ziva stunned by his choice in assignments. In a moment's notice she jumped up from her desk and rushed towards the closing elevator doors and jumping inside quickly.

"Did you not have an assignment for me or are you still giving me the first degree?" Ziva asked her anger showing.

Gibbs guessed she meant "third degree". He pushed the stop button on the elevator, "You questioning my assignments now?"

"I am a member of your team. I should not be regulated to simply sitting at my desk!" Ziva replied, "I want to help find Ramirez, not just sit idly by."

Gibbs didn't respond for a moment but turned a penetrated stare on to her, "When was the last time you slept? Or ate?"

"I am fine Gibbs," Ziva told him, "I have been on cases like this before. I can handle a little strain."

"Yes _you_ can," Gibbs agreed, "but you have more than yourself to worry about now. Getting involved like this, you need to take a step back and realize that at this moment taking care of yourself should be top priority."

Her anger slowly melted away, he was right, she did need to focus on her own child instead of Mary's. "You are right," Ziva sighed, "I just…I want to find him Gibbs."

"We will," Gibbs told her, "but I don't want you to hurt yourself before than."

* * *

Ducky was once more comfortably ensconced in autopsy away from the onlookers and the press, now it was just him and Palmer putting together another jigsaw puzzle of bones, here he could give the deceased the proper attention she deserved in life.

His assistant was looking through the pile of burned wood pieces, trash and of course the remaining bones. The larger more identifiable pieces had already been separated and placed in the correct setting on another table, now he was conducting the more painstaking task of finding the smaller bones. Jimmy held up a small bone he found in the debris, "This looks like one of the vertebrae doctor."

Ducky took a look, "Yes Mr. Palmer, to be more specific one of the cervical vertebrae, since we already have the axis and atlas this must be one of the remaining five." He took the small bone from his assistant and cheerfully placed it near the skull on the table where it joined the other vertebrae found already.

The autopsy doors opened and Agent Gibbs breezed through quickly like he always did, "Got anything for me Duck?"

"As always Jethro you come precisely when I need you," Ducky smiled at his old friend, "and as always right down to business." He meandered over x-ray screen to show x-rays of the victims teeth and those of Lance Corporal Lambert, "Dental records confirm what we already knew, the victim is indeed Lance Corporal Mary Lambert."

Now Ducky walked back over to the skeleton laid out on the table, "Would you care to venture a guess cause of death?"

"Stabbing?" Gibbs guessed from what little evidence they had in the Lance Corporal's case.

"An interesting idea especially since Abby found the victim's blood on two knives from her home, however I could not find any cuts in the bone to suggest stabbing," Ducky explained.

"What killed her then?"

The doctor smiled, "Mr. Palmer found the victim's hyoid bone hidden among the debris, it was cracked which suggests…"

"Strangulation," Gibbs finished smoothly looking over the bone in question.

"Of course given the conditions the bones were found in it is likely that the cracking occurred during transportation or as a result of the fire, either way strangulation is in my opinion the most likely cause of death," Ducky finished his eyes turning to the remains on the table, his face took on a sad serious tone.

"Something troubles me Jethro," the Englishman began gravely, "The man must have known no criminal charges could have been filed, he must have known that she wouldn't have won her case. There was no way to prove his guilt, so why would he kill her? What was the point?"

Gibbs shook his head, "I don't know Duck. I don't see any reason behind it either."

The doctor looked down once more at the skeleton, "Now a young woman is dead along with her child…for what? Control? Does it look like Corporal Ramirez is in control now?" He looked back up at Gibbs, "Find the bastard Jethro, she deserves that much."

* * *

Tony begged and pleaded with the vending machine to release his favorite bag of chips, either it was feeling generous or Tony's begging worked, he finally held the coveted bag of chips and was ready to savor his favorite snack at his desk.

His plans were cut short by the sighting of Ziva rushing through the ladies room door as if the devil himself was chasing her. Tony saw that he had two options, he could go to his desk and satisfy his hunger or he could break into the bathroom and satisfy his curiosity on Ziva's behavior.

It took a split second to decide.

Upon entering the restroom it was obvious as to Ziva's reasons for her visit, the sound of gagging is what greeted him upon arrival. _Okay this may be grosser than I thought_, he remarked to himself before shouting, "Ziva?"

A groan from the fourth stall told him where she was, "Leave me alone Tony," she called out obviously not to happy with his latest stunt, "This is the ladies room, remember?!"

"Hey you come into the men's room all the time, you're not telling me that _this_ is embarrassing?" He remarked; the slight shuffling of feet caused him to realize that there was another person present.

The geeky young woman he vaguely recognized from legal gave him a wide-eyed awkward look. Tony turned on the charm and smiled, "Hi," he told her but his eyes were speaking a different story. They clearly stated one thing; ­_please get out of here now!_

The woman caught the unmistakable look hastily making a quick exit and finally leaving Tony and Ziva alone. The toilet flushing prompted Tony to turn back to his reasons for busting into the restroom in the first place, Ziva finally came out of the stall looking a little pale and tired, "What do you want Tony?" She asked as she made her way to the sink to rinse out her mouth as well as splash some of the cold water on her face.

"I just want to talk," Tony explained, "I need to know what's going on with you. You barely speak to me anymore, you're getting involved with this case, attacking suspects," he turned her around to look at him so he could see the hurt in her eyes along with another emotion.

Fear.

It wasn't something he was used to seeing in Ziva, she was the one who could take down three suspects at the same time without breaking a sweat; she could dismantle a bomb without shaky fingers and had the guts to go up against any challenge thrown her way. What could she be afraid of? "I just want to know what's wrong, I want to help and I can't do that until you tell me…until you let me in."

Ziva shook her head and stepped away from him, "There isn't anything you can do." She quickly made her way to the exit but Tony wasn't going to let her drop this that easily.

He caught her outside the restroom and pulled her behind the stairs, a small private place they'd had many conversations before. "No Ziva, you're not going to run away from this one," Tony told her severely, "You need to tell me what's wrong." He looked into her eyes for a long moment before finally asking the question he dreaded, "Do you want out?"

She looked at him confused, "Outside?"

He almost rolled his eyes at her English skills, "No not outside, do you want out of this relationship? Do you want to break up?"

Now her eyes widened with surprise which was quickly replaced with pain, "Is that what _you_ want?"

"No," Tony replied quickly but it didn't relieve the anguish in her eyes, "I thought that maybe that's what you wanted."

"It's not," Ziva told him but didn't reveal anything more than that.

Tony sighed a little relieved but returned to prodding for information, "Then what is it?"

She shook her head, "Just let it go Tony."

"No I want 'let it go' I want to know what's going on," He cupped her cheek his hand forcing her to look up at him, "What aren't you telling me?"

Ziva looked into his eyes for a long time, he couldn't tell what she was thinking or why she was hesitating. Her eyes spoke little beyond fear but he silently prayed he had broken through the wall that surrounded her secrets and now she could tell him the one that was currently burdening her the most. He could take what ever it is she threw at him.

Ziva took a deep breath, a calming motion that gave Tony hope that she had finally decided to tell him the truth, finally she would speak whatever it was that was weighing on her so heavily. They could sort out whatever the problem was and they could return to the comfortable nature of their relationship, he was certain of it.

She chose her words carefully, pronouncing each word with a heavy weight as if they had difficulty leaving her lips.

"I am…pregnant."

Of all the sentences he thought Ziva would utter _that_ was not one of them. He swore as soon as the final word registered in his mind the temperature in the room dropped forty degrees. This must be how a heart attack, stroke and an embolism must feel like, he decided but as his thoughts swirled around inside his head the only one that remained crystal clear was the most frightening of all.

Ziva was pregnant.

The whirlwind in his mind and his certainty that his heart would never stop beating again accounted for the stupidity of words that finally left his mouth, "Is it mine?"

As soon as he spoke his brain decided to start working again, he winced once he realized the idiotic question he spoke and he could tell from the annoyance in Ziva's expression that she agreed with him whole heartedly.

"Of course it is yours," she told him angrily, "what do you think I am, some sort of scamp?"

"Tramp," he corrected reflexively and winced again. How could he be handling this so badly? Before she could yell at him he held up his hands in a gesture of surrender, "I'm sorry that was stupid I just… I need to wrap my mind around this." Tony covered his eyes with his hands to block out any and all thoughts beyond Ziva's surprising revelation.

Gratefully Ziva seemed to understand that he needed a moment, she didn't speak but let him try to sort out his own thoughts. Tony finally looked at her again, "You're pregnant," he repeated hoping that speaking aloud would let it register, "Are you sure?"

Ziva nodded, "I took a test before we were called in," she explained, "and I cannot ignore the other symptoms, morning sickness, fatigue…it is the only rational explanation."

Tony silently agreed and wondered how the hell he'd missed all of this. It explained her marathon bathroom time earlier, her reaction to the hamburger he'd eaten earlier as well as her anger towards Corporal Ramirez. Most of all it explained why she was taking Lance Corporal Lambert's case to heart, she identified with Lambert and her child because she was pregnant herself. Ziva's wistful looks in the nursery, her tears at the crime scene and her pain when the body was found, it all made since now.

Ziva continued to explain now that she'd finally told him the truth, "I know this is unexpected and the timing is…bad, but I really want this baby. I want to be a mother and I…I do not want to do this alone." She waited for a reaction from him but he was still stunned speechless and having trouble putting together a coherent sentence.

"Please say something," she pleaded with hurt eyes.

Tony wished he could but every thought that came to his mind; every word he wanted to speak seemed more idiotic than the next.

A baby? He was going to be a father? The idea seemed foreign to him, a nice picture he'd had tucked away in the back of his mind. A far off picture that he wasn't ready for, it wasn't something he thought about a lot. Children weren't something he and Ziva had ever talked about, maybe later when more time had passed.

But now? He couldn't be ready, he wasn't ready. How could he be when something like this just surprises you? He could barely take care of himself, how was he expected to be a father?

But Ziva was still standing there, waiting for him to speak. She needed his reassurance, she needed him to hold her close and help her sort through this crazy mess because as terrifying this was to him it had to be worse for her. He wanted to help her but he just couldn't seem to will his mouth to speak, his body to move and comfort her.

Instead he was still frozen, the living statue of Tony DiNozzo.

It was McGee who was able to break through the fog in Tony's mind. The younger agent was coming from the evidence garage when he saw his friends by the stairs, seemingly in a deep conversation. "Hey guys," he said cheerfully, "what's going on?"

Ziva never looked at McGee, her eyes remained on Tony only now a cold resignation seemed to be in place, "Nothing important McGee," she told him with her eyes trained on Tony, "I should get back to work."

Tony was left to stare at her retreating figure, now he could only wonder if an opportunity had been lost. Had he caused irrevocable damage or could he fix this?

He didn't know, anger surged at McGee for interrupting what was certainly the most important, albeit frightening, moment of his life. Tony turned a scathing glare at McGee, his hands raised ready to head slap or maybe even punch the eager MIT graduate.

Luckily for McGee Tony's conscience kicked in, McGee was blameless and clueless. He had no idea what was going on between Tony and Ziva, he didn't know the importance of the conversation he'd interrupted or what a royal ass Tony had made of himself. Tony wasn't realy angry at McGee, he was angry at himself and the other agent shouldn't suffer from that.

Instead Tony's hands curled into fist and he resisted the urge to hurt McGee though he couldn't completely repress his anger so he spoke through gritted teeth, "Great timing there Probie."

Now it was McGee's turn to watch his friend walk away, he hadn't been oblivious to Tony's emotions when the senior agent had spoken to him, he just didn't know the cause of it. He was left to wonder aloud, "What did I do?"

* * *

Abby strolled through the doors to autopsy a one hundred mega watt smile on her face, "Hey Duckman, got anything for me to compare to Corporal Lambert's DNA?" In most agencies dental records would have sufficed for identification but since Vincent Hanlan's teeth had shown up in a body that wasn't his, she and Ducky had always run DNA as well as dental records.

"Well hello Abby," Ducky greeted the forensic scientist, "I'll get you your sample in just a bit." He was examining the skeleton for a bit of charred flesh to place in her waiting petri dish.

Abby's attention turned to a small pile of tiny burned bones on a separate table, "Are those the remains of Lance Corporal Lambert's baby?" She asked her voice taking on a sad tone; it was never easy to deal with dead children.

"Perhaps," Ducky told her, "but it seems that most of those are more than likely the Lance Corporal's tarsal or carpal phalanges or other small bones." Ducky shook his head, "I'm having a devil of a time finding the child's bones."

Abby's brow furrowed, "Why?"

"Most babies are composed of mostly cartilage which burns with the rest of the body, but even unborn children do have some bones that should survive. Very small of course, the inomniate bones of the hip would be small than Lima beans. But I can't even find the skull!"

The Goth scientist was still listening to Ducky but her thoughts were taking a different twist, an idea was forming in her mind. If she was right than Gibbs would probably want to kill her!

"I suppose it is possible the remains are still in the pile of debris over there, of course since the child's bones are so fragile they could have been destroyed in transport…"

"I have to go Ducky," she said quickly rushing out the door before Ducky could finish his sentence. She'd barely heard the rest of his ramblings; she had to get back to her lab now!

* * *

It was the hardest part of any case, telling the victim's family that their loved one would never be coming home. Gibbs hated having to be the bearer of such bad news but as team leader it was a job that fell on his shoulders.

He'd been prepared to call Susan Lambert into headquarters to explain but her desperation for news on her daughter's case led to her showing up at the agency before he had a chance to call her himself.

Being of gentle nature he led her into a private room, one like the one Ziva had interviewed her in. Her eyes were large with lack of sleep and fear, he guess that a part of her already knew what was coming.

"Mrs. Lambert," he began but her own intuitiveness interrupted.

"You found my daughter," she stated knowingly.

Gibbs nodded, "Yes."

"Where is she?" Susan asked frantically, her thoughts turning towards the worse but her heart begged for hope. "Is she here? Is she alright…please don't tell me that she's…please…"

The agent's blue eyes were sad, with a slight shake of his head slowly began to dispel the hope in her heart, "I'm so sorry Mrs. Lambert."

That sentence was all it took; it was all she needed to hear to let the rush of sobs control her. That simple sentence said everything.

Her daughter was dead.

_OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO_

Tony was desperate to find a way to talk to Ziva; unfortunately she was pretty dead set against leaving her desk or the safety of the squad room. He couldn't blame her, standing there in shocked silence didn't look well on his qualities of fatherhood; it showed that he hadn't known what to do.

He still didn't know what to do, he just hoped that maybe working things out with Ziva would give him a good idea, then the terrified feeling would go away. Tony kept peeking up at Ziva from his desk, she was busy on her computer, she might not have noticed his attempts to get her attention…or she was pretending not to.

Thank god for Instant Messaging. With a few clicks of the keys a message box popped up on Ziva's screen with Tony's familiar screen name attached.

_We need to talk._

She pursed her lips and responded.

_Not right now._

Tony wasn't going to take no for an answer, not without a real reason beyond her own misguided ideas.

_When?_

Ziva sighed, she wasn't a fool. Tony's reaction to her pregnancy had not been unexpected, but it didn't look good on his thoughts of fatherhood. She could tell that the thought frightened him, what she didn't know is if it frightened him to the point of running away. She hoped not…but she couldn't help but think that maybe her own fears on Tony were correct. Could she be faced with raising their child alone?

_We can't deal with this right now. You need to decide if you are ready to deal with this at all._

Tony stared at the words on his screen. She didn't think he was ready; he couldn't blame her for her thoughts since he wasn't at all sure if he was ready either. At any rate her words clearly stated that she didn't want to discuss the status of their relationship over the computer. He snuck another peek at her over the desk.

This was going to be harder than he thought.

"Where's Gibbs?!" Abby shouted from across the room, running towards the team leader's empty desk.

"He's not here Abby," McGee replied taken aback by her frazzled state.

"I can see he's not here McGee," she snapped, "where is he?!"

"He was speaking to Mary's mother," Ziva told Abby standing up from her desk, "Is something wrong?"

"I messed up big time!" Abby explained, "I mean really bad, Gibbs is probably going to head slap me for this one, I can't believe I missed this!"

"What Abby?!" Tony asked now all three agents surrounded the scientist.

"Not until I tell Gibbs."

"Tell me what?" Gibbs asked as he rounded the bulk head, his appearance showed that he was a little ragged from talking with the sobbing mother of the victim.

"Gibbs, I really screwed up," Abby repeated, "In my defense it didn't seem like I needed to check, after all what evidence suggested it. It wasn't until Ducky mentioned that he was having a hard time finding the baby's bones that it even occurred to me."

"What?" Gibbs asked now getting a little frustrated.

"The blood on the knife," Abby explained quickly, "the blood that belongs to the baby, well sort of."

"Just tell me Abby."

"Okay, I looked deeper at the blood on the knife, more specifically the protein that made it," she told them her words leaving her mouth a mile a minute, "the DNA on the knife isn't from the baby, it's from the placenta."

"What are you saying Abby?" Gibbs asked, all of eyes were on the forensic scientist trying to understand what she was frantically explaining.

"It's the baby Gibbs," Abby finished, "the baby could still be alive."

_*foof*_

* * *

A/N: HAHAHAHA I love ending things on cliff hangers. Remember I did say that I would diverge away from the real case this is based off of, from now on even you guys well versed in Maria Lauterbach's case need to expect the unexpected. LOL, I hope you guys liked this chapter. Head's up, the next chaper is the last one so you guys will find out soon if they'll find Ramirez in time, where the baby is and of course what's going to happen between Tony and Ziva.


	5. All Good Things

Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing

A/N: Hey it's Nerwen back from the dead!! I know it's been like 6 months since I posted last but I have some good excuses. My summer break was anything but a break, I barely had time to write and when I finally did have time...the unthinkable happen. My computer decided it was time to die so I had to wipe out my hardrive. Good news: I'd saved everything, bad news: it took me forever to finally get Microsoft Word onto my computer to finish the chapter. Then when I finally got everthing back where it should be, school started and man that has left me without any time to breathe let alone work on stories.

But here it is.

Special thanks to all my reviewers who kept sending me messages reminding me that I promised an update.

A VERY special thanks to my sister for helping write this chapter, reading my drafts and most of all, giving me a swift kick in the pants to get back to work, I couldn't have finished it without her.

So here it is all my beloved fans, the fifth and final chapter of Ripped From the Headlines, I know I'm sad but as the title says, "All good things must come to an end"

* * *

Chapter 5: All Good Things…

"What are you saying Abby?" Gibbs asked, all of eyes were on the forensic scientist trying to understand what she was frantically explaining.

"It's the baby Gibbs," Abby finished, "the baby could still be alive."

"Are you sure?" Gibbs asked looking straight into her eyes to determine the Goth's certainty.

"It's the only explanation for why a knife would be used with only the blood from the placenta on it," Abby told him.

"But she was eight months along," Ziva reminded them, "what are the chances for the baby's survival at that stage?"

"With proper care, very good," Abby finished, "he might be a little small but barring any complications should be healthy."

"The question we should be asking is 'where is the baby?'," Tony asked.

Gibb's turned to McGee who quickly answered, "We searched the Ramirez house; there was no evidence of a baby anywhere."

"It probably means they left him with friends," Gibbs remarked, "Update the BOLO, make it clear that we are looking for a premature infant…"

"And call all the hospitals and physicians in the area to see if anybody has treated a premature infant," Tony finished, "Got it.

Now he turned to McGee who answered just as quickly, "Check up with friends of Ramirez, find out if any of them have been taking care of a baby recently."

Next it was Ziva's turn, "I'll call my contacts in Mexico, find out if Corporal Ramirez has made it out of the country."

Gibbs nodded to his team, "I want to find that baby, today!"

* * *

Three hours later the investigation into Lance Corporal Mary Lambert's case was still on going and the search for her missing son had gone no where. McGee was still making calls to friends of Ramirez but Tony knew that it would probably lead to nothing. Ziva was check up with her friends in Mexico again to see if Ramirez had made it into the country, if he had then they didn't know about it. And Tony had checked with all the hospitals in the area, no baby had been brought in that wasn't accounted for.

Now it was quiet, the kind of quiet that allowed the thoughts Tony had been trying to push out his mind to creep back into the foreground. He noticed that his fingers were absently tapping on the book of baby names that Ziva had swiped from evidence lockup and he, in turn, had filched it from her desk after her little announcement earlier. He didn't know why he wanted to look at the book; the picture of the smiling baby scared the hell out of him now that he knew that within a few months _he_ was going to have one. Tony's attempts to talk to Ziva were still being met with a brick wall, always making excuses that she was busy on the case.

Gibbs walked into the bullpen from the elevator, a brand new cup of coffee in his hands, the first thing he did was look at Tony, "I called all the hospitals," Tony said, his voice flat since his mind was still on more personal things, "nobody brought in a missing infant."

"I'm still calling friends of Ramirez," McGee piped in, oblivious to his friend's inner turmoil, "Nothing yet boss."

Now Gibbs saw the empty desk next to his, "Where is David?"

McGee shrugged, "Maybe she's still talking to her contacts in Mexico."

Tony scoffed silently to himself, he knew where Ziva was. The agent behind her desk had brought in take out Chinese food and as soon as she smelled his General Tso's she's made a mad dash for the Head. Her morning sickness was pretty bad, he'd wanted to follow her but knowing Ziva's pride, it would have just made her even angrier at him.

His eyes flickered back down to the book on his desk; Ziva had been flipping through the book a lot since they'd opened the case. Had she picked out any names? Tony couldn't help but wonder what names Ziva would like…what she would name _their_ child.

Tony didn't notice that Gibbs was watching him, noting his senior agent's absent thoughts. He took a sip of coffee before walking quietly to McGee's desk, "Go help Abby with the evidence from Ramirez's house."

"But I thought you wanted…" McGee protested until he saw the infamous Gibbs Glare, "I'll get right on that." And the younger agent quickly scurried away to Abby's Lab.

Gibbs walked over to stand in front of the plasma screen by Tony's desk; he took another sip of coffee before casually saying, "Ziva finally told you didn't she?"

Tony looked up at his boss in surprise, denial was on the tip of his tongue but Gibbs' knowing eyes quickly told him that lying was useless, "Of course you would know…did she tell you or did you…" Another look from Gibbs gave his the answer, "She didn't have to tell you, you probably knew before she did, what do you have a direct phone line with God? Do you know how long we've been together?"

"Six months."

"How do you do that? Do you know the day too?"

"DiNozzo."

"Right boss, not important," Tony stopped rambling and looked back down at his desk, absently rubbing the tip of his finger across the word 'baby' in the title of the book, "She's got morning sickness. I followed her into the bathroom, wanted to see what was wrong." Tony grinned without any humor in the smile, "I thought she wanted to break up…then she just lays this bombshell on me. I mean it felt like she just hit me in the head with a _really_ large hammer, or one of those anvils from those _Roadrunner_ cartoons."

Gibbs gave him another look and Tony got the message, "So she's standing there, waiting for me to say something, anything, and I have all of these thoughts just rolling around in my head and for the life of me I can't get my lips to move! I'm just frozen there watching as she's begging for me to speak…but I can't think of what the right thing is. All I can think about is how the last thing I thought would ever happen to me is happening _right now_ and I don't…I have no idea what to do!"

Tony once more looked to Gibbs, "Just look at my life boss, I've passed from one screw up to the next. I can barely take care of myself and a kid…it's not like anything else in life. If you mess up than you will _ruin_ that kid's life, they'll run away or go into a gang or if they're a Menendez, shoot you in your sleep…and all of this is _your _fault!"

He finally stopped rambling, his eyes focused ahead and away from Gibbs as he finally said softly his true feelings, "I don't think I can do this boss."

Gibbs leaned down to eye level with Tony, "Look at me DiNozzo," he said firmly and Tony obeyed, "You _can_ do this."

"How do you know?"

"Because I didn't think you could, I would have told you," Gibbs explained, "You are going to be afraid, you are going to make mistakes, but you will learn and you will find a way to get through it all…and it will be worth it."

Tony was silent for a moment as he took in Gibbs's words, "You really think so boss?"

Gibbs grinned, "I know so DiNozzo," He took another swig of his coffee and then casually slapped Tony on the back of the head.

"What was that for?!"

"For doubting yourself."

Gibbs walked back over to his desk still smiling, just as he sat down his phone began to ring. "Gibbs."

He listened for a moment and Tony could see his eyes grow serious. Gibbs set the phone back down on the receiver, "Get Ziva, Abby's got something."

* * *

Gibbs, Tony and a pale Ziva trooped into Abby's office where McGee and the Goth forensic scientist were waiting. "Gibbs Gibbs Gibbs!" Abby called waving from her computer, "We've got it!"

"We think, we've got it," McGee corrected.

"Oh we have so got it!" Abby shot back.

"What _do_ you have?" Gibbs asked stopping the bickering.

"We checked into friends of Corporal Ramirez," McGee explained.

"More specifically, Grayson Samuels," Abby interrupted.

Ziva looked at them surprised, "You found the baby?"

Abby shook her head, "No, Samuels doesn't have anything that suggest he has the baby," She grinned, "but what he does have is a phone call from a phone booth a few miles outside of the naval base, it took place twenty minutes after Ramirez's wife said her husband went to the store."

"We called the convenience store where the pay phone is located," McGee continued, "they said a guy matching Ramirez's description was the only person who used that phone all day."

"He knows where Ramirez is," Gibbs finished.

"There's more!" Abby exclaimed, "Right after he talked to Ramirez, Samuels called his brother."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Tony asked.

"Because, Samuels' brother owns a small plane that he uses to fly tourists around, his favorite spot, Mexico!"

McGee looked up at Gibbs, "We called the hangar where his brother's plane is, they said that he canceled all of his tour groups today, said he was taken a private person on a tour to Mexico later today."

"Private tour," Tony scoffed, "More like a one way trip."

"Samuels is getting his brother to take Ramirez to Mexico," Ziva finished, speaking what they were all thinking.

Gibbs shook his head, "Not if I can help it."

* * *

There had been no doubt who would be driving to the hangar, while Ziva could certainly make a close second when it came to making record times; no one could beat Gibbs when he was determined to catch a suspect. The hairpin turns and weaving in and out of traffic made McGee nauseous and certainly hadn't helped with Ziva's own stomach troubles, Tony simply hugged the seatbelt and held on, praying he didn't go through the windshield.

"Take a left boss," Tony half groaned as the tires squealed on the asphalt.

The building that housed Samuels' brother's plane was looming ahead of them when Gibbs's phone rang, he didn't even hesitate, just continued to drive erratically with one hand as he answered, "What is it Abs?"

His team's eavesdropping abilities were taking a hit as they tried to stay alive in the giant missile that was their car, "Uh huh," Gibbs said into his phone, "Are you sure? Alright, we'll take care of it when we're done here."

"What is it?" Ziva asked.

Gibbs didn't reply but instead slammed on the brakes causing all of the occupants to lurch forward, the seatbelts digging into their chests but doing their rightful job at keeping them from slamming against the seat in front of them. "We're here," Gibbs announced as he leapt from the car, followed quickly behind Ziva.

The door to the warehouse was open and they could all see Samuels inside. For a moment the man looked shocked at their sudden arrival, but that quickly left his face. He yanked out a pistol and fired a shot at them. His aim was wide and it went over Gibbs's shoulder, striking the pavement instead.

Immediately, the team withdrew their own weapons and fired back, but Samuels had already ducked behind a series of wooden crates. "Enrique, go!" he shouted.

Ramirez stood just outside the plane. He let out a few shots from his gun before he climbed inside. The plane pulled out of the warehouse and barreled towards the team. They all ran to the side to keep from getting run over. Gibbs narrowed in on the fuel tank and let loose two shots. Both bullets hit the tank and let the fuel flow free from it. The plane kept moving, leaving behind a river of reeking gasoline, until there simply wasn't enough fuel to keep it moving forward.

The plane was slowing down, but that didn't stop Ramirez. He leapt from the plane and ran down the runway. Samuels attempted to distract the team by firing off some more shots. "We've got him, boss!" Tony shouted before he and McGee ran towards Samuels while firing off some rounds.

Ramirez was gaining ground on his escape though his current destination was unclear. Ziva kept her grip strong on her gun as she took off after him. She wasn't going to get away. Mary deserved justice for what that bastard had done to her.

"Ziva!" Gibbs shouted at her, but she pretended not to here. All of her Mossad training allowed her to have incredible focus on her target, enough to where it was easy to forget the rest of the world around, even the fact that she harbored a tiny life in her body.

She was catching up and Ramirez knew this. He slowed down his pace enough for him to turn around and shoot. His aim was much better than Samuels so Ziva had no choice but the drop to ground to escape the fire. She went back on her feet within seconds and took off after him again.

The distance between them had shortened enough for her to aim her weapon and fire. Her plan was to incapacitate, not kill, so the round struck his shoulder blade. The sudden shock of pain made Ramirez fall to the dirt.

Her successful shot gave her enough time to catch up to him, but Ramirez was ready for her. A knife was in his hand and he slashed out at her. Ziva had to jump back to keep from getting wounded. It occurred to her now just the sort of danger she was in. Normally she could tunnel in on the job, but now that she was pregnant she had to protect herself from harm.

Ramirez was intelligent enough to see that he had a brief window of control. He launched himself on top of her, pinning Ziva to the ground. She forced her fears to the very back of her mind and fought back, delivering a solid punch to the man's jaw.

He fell to the side, but was only stunned long enough for Ziva to get back on her feet. He followed her with his knife ready once again. She kicked at his knees, missing intentionally to try and build up his confidence. Ramirez lunged for her and she grabbed his wrist and twisted it to the side.

There was the vicious sound of bones cracking and Ramirez let out a cry of pain. The knife fell harmlessly to the soil. Ziva kicked it to the side and then knocked his knees out from under him. He didn't try to get up again.

Ziva was panting for breath from the fight. Now that it was over, her adrenaline cooled and she felt the queasiness settled back in. "It's over Ramirez," Ziva told him, her weapon trained on his head.

Gibbs wasn't far behind her, once he was within earshot Ziva called out, "He'll need a doctor, he didn't want to go down quietly."

"In a minute," Gibbs replied looking squarely in Ramirez's eyes, "He's got to answer some questions first." He leaned down so he was nose to nose with the disgraced Corporal, "Where's the baby Ramirez?" He asked him his voice increasing in volume, "Where is he?!"

* * *

It was dark out at the military base, the cookie-cutter houses were quiet with only a few lights on to show that some of the occupants might still be awake. Gibbs was now driving through the streets slowly, the urgency that occurred earlier in the day was no longer necessary, but there was silence within the car. No words needed to be said.

He parked on the curb outside of the house; Corporal Michael Jennings got out of his own car parked a few doors down and slowly made his way to the team. "I was watching the house when I saw her go in, I knew I should call you."

"Thank you Corporal," Gibbs told the young man, "We'll take it from here."

The rest of the NCIS team followed Gibbs up the front walk and quietly through the door, each of their weapons were drawn but none of them really expected to use it. The shoot out was over, only one more piece of business was left.

Slowly down the hallway they crept, Gibbs leading followed by Ziva, Tony and McGee. He opened the door and shined his flashlight and pointed his weapon into the nursery Lance Corporal Mary Lambert had put together with great love and care.

Now his light showed Marisol Ramirez rifling through the open drawer of the bureau, an open duffel bag on the floor by her feet filled with disposable diapers and plastic bottles. A sling was drawn across her body so that the tiny baby boy was resting peacefully against her chest, leaving her hands free to grab the items necessary to care for him.

She gasped in shock once she saw the agents and their weapons pointed at her, she did the smart thing and raised both of her hands over her head. "I take care of him," she said with her heavily accented voice.

"We know," Gibbs replied firmly, "but it's over now Mrs. Ramirez."

"It not over."

"Yes it is, we have your husband."

Tears shown in her eyes when she heard those words, "You found Enrique?"

Gibbs nodded, "He never made it to Mexico, we caught him before he could get on the plane; he's in our custody now."

Marisol's eyes narrowed at Agent Gibbs, "I not kill her."

"Yes we know," Ziva spoke up from beside her team leader, "Your husband told us that he took your car and came to Mary's home alone that night…but you followed him."

"I not kill her!" she said again firmly.

"No," Ziva repeated, "but you watched her die, as _your_ husband strangled her in her own living room…because he knew that when his son was born, all of his lies would come out."

"But then you stood up to him," Gibbs stated, "didn't you." Marisol looked up at him expectantly as he continued with the evidence, "Our scientist identified the blood on the kitchen knife as yours…you were the one who cut the baby out and saved his life."

Marisol was silent as she looked down at the tiny boy in the sling, she looked back up at Gibbs and her dark brown eyes were hard, "I not care about _her_. I only want my husband safe." She looked down at the baby once more, "but this is his son, I could not let him die."

"But Mary didn't matter," Ziva finished sadly.

Marisol shook her head, "No."

Gibbs took a step forward, "Give us the baby Mrs. Ramirez, if you care about your husband's son so much…you know he needs to come with us."

Now Marisol took a step back and held the baby up close to her chest, "No," she said sternly, "He belong to Enrique."

Ziva stepped forward, she put her weapon down on the floor in a show of good faith as she walked towards the distraught woman, "No Marisol…he belongs to Mary. She loved her son very much. Look around this room, everything here was chosen out of love and care for her baby." She looked into the older woman's eyes, "Marisol, it's time for you to let go."

Marisol was silent as she looked down at the baby in her arms. She turned her eyes to Ziva as tears crept down her cheeks before she carefully lifted the baby out of his sling and laid him gently in Ziva's waiting arms.

Once the baby was secure in Ziva's grasp, Gibbs motioned for Tony and McGee. The two agents quickly made their way into the room and as McGee handcuffed Marisol's wrists behind her back, Tony led her outside, all the while reading her rights.

Ziva gently rocked the tiny baby in her arms; he had been fast asleep through it all but he stirred softly now, his little fingers flexing against his palm as he slept. She smiled sweetly at the little boy and gently hummed as she sat down in the wooden rocker in the corner, finally feeling at peace.

* * *

The next day the NCIS squad room was bright from the afternoon sun and the even more intense orange walls. McGee was talking on the phone with nobody Tony cared about, Tony was instead looking over at the empty desk in front of his. Ziva had spent most of the night at the hospital, watching over the baby even after the doctor had declared him to be in perfect health and Child Services had arrived.

Now the social worker in charge of taking care of Mary Lambert's son was waiting by the large window next to Tony's desk. He noticed her impatient mannerisms out of the corner of his eye so he turned to her, "Gibbs said he was on his way back with Lance Corporal Lambert's mother, he should be here in a few minutes."

McGee hung up his phone and turned to his team mate, "I just got off the phone with Bethesda, Corporal Ramirez is fine and he should be released to Leavenworth authorities tomorrow."

"Let's hope he stays there for the rest of his life," Tony remarked casually. He really didn't care about the Corporal. Now that the case was finished all Tony could think about was how he was going to fix his screwed up life, more importantly, how he was going to fix things with Ziva.

Frustrated, Tony snatched the report off of his desk and opened the file cabinet to place it in its proper place, closing the door with a little more force than necessary. It was then that the social services worker's phone began to ring and she couldn't answer it with her arms currently occupied with Mary's son.

"Could you please?" She asked as she held out the infant to Tony.

"Oh I don't…" Tony began to protest but she ignored his words and thrust the baby into his arms. It took a moment before Tony could find a position that seemed comfortable and gave the baby the proper support.

McGee was grinning at Tony's discomfort, "Look at that, Tony's a babysitter."

"Yeah well," Tony began a biting remark on the tip of his tongue but he looked down at the little boy in his arms. His blue eyes were wide open and looking up at Tony in wonder as he gently sucked on a pacifier, he was so soft and quiet and he had to admit: adorable. "It's not that bad," Tony finished quietly, still looking down at the baby.

Ziva turned the corner from the stairway and saw the scene at her team's cluster of desks. Tony holding Mary's little son with some obvious satisfaction as he gently tried to rock the baby, she couldn't help but smile softly. Then Tony looked up and caught her gaze, for the longest moment their eyes were locked onto each other, each feeling the magnitude of the moment and the significance it had on their own situation.

Now the social worker finished speaking to whoever it was that called her and she put her phone away, she smiled at Tony, "Thank your for taking over like that."

"It was not a problem," Tony said truthfully as handed her back the baby.

Ziva was finally able to tear her gaze away from Tony and she put on a smile for the woman, "Hi, I'm Officer David," she said quickly, "I just spoke with Agent Gibbs he should be here right about," The elevator doors open and she saw the familiar figure of her team leader, "now."

Gibbs was genuinely smiling as he led Susan Lambert into the squad room, he gestured with his hand to the woman holding the baby, "Mrs. Lambert, this is your grandson."

Susan Lambert's sad face was immediately replaced with one a look of pure joy and wonder as she saw the tiny bundle the other woman was holding. With a soft gasp she gratefully accepted the tiny boy and held him close to her chest, gently stroking his soft little fingers. Tears pooled in her eyes and trailed down her cheeks but her smile was real as she looked up at Gibbs, "Thank you," she told him and then looked to the rest of the team, "Thank you, all of you, so much."

Tony and Ziva were only standing about a foot apart now as the both looked on at Mrs. Lambert in wonder, then Tony's eyes turned to Ziva as he beheld her expression at seeing grandmother and grandson meeting for the first time. It took a moment for Ziva to notice that Tony was watching her, and then she too turned her head to look at him. Their eyes once more locked on each other, both begging silently to know the other's thoughts but too afraid to speak aloud.

What would the future bring?

* * *

Tony hesitated for a moment, taking a deep breath and letting it out, before he finally knocked on the door. He could only pray that he wouldn't mess this up again.

It only took a minute for Ziva to open the door but she wasn't prepared to see Tony outside of her apartment, though she had been hoping for this all night. Still she couldn't seem to find any words to say, which was fine with Tony, it was his turn to do the talking.

He looked into her eyes seriously, his voice gentle but firm, "I'm not ready," he told her, and he meant it. Still the pained look in her face when he spoke the truth nearly broke his heart, but he could only hope she would understand his next words.

"I'm not ready to have a baby, I don't know anything, not how to change a diaper or fix up a crib…I don't even know how you feed them," Tony told her taking a step closer towards her, "but I want to be. I want to be ready and I promise that I will do whatever it takes to get there, to understand what it is that I will have to do.

"I want do this," Tony explained, "I want to be there for you…I want to do this together…just tell me that I'm not too late."

Ziva didn't say anything but the tears that glistened in her eyes spoke volumes. She couldn't find her voice to say what she wanted to speak…but actions spoke louder than words.

She took a step forward and let herself fall against Tony's chest, his arms gently enfolding her in a welcome embrace. He pressed his lips into her hair, smelling that special scent that he loved so much. He wanted to keep a tight grasp on the ones who mattered to him most.

His family.

_*Foof*_

_In Memory of Lance Corporal Maria Lauterbach and her unborn baby girl._

_May you hold your baby in heaven for God is kindest to those who suffer most._

* * *

A/N: I wish Gibbs had been there to really get Maria Lauterbach's murderer. Unlike Ramirez, Corporal Ceasar Armando Laurean really did escape to Mexico. Thankfully he was found and is in the process of extradition...the bad news is that the death penalty is no longer an option.

Well what did you guys think? I hope you found the ending as satisfying as I did, it seemed like a great way to end an episode.

I'm sure there will be a lot of questions wondering if I am going to continue this story.

Well this case is done and this was never meant to be more than a case fic. However, my sister (the angel that she is) was begging me to continue this storyline since she loved the idea of Tony and Ziva having a baby. So we got to wondering what would happen if this was really on the show and we both began to come up with ideas on how the team would react to Tony and Ziva having a baby, I especially loved what we came up with for Abby.

So, yes this fic is over but yes I am also going to continue with this storyline in other fics similar to this one. The next story will be about how NCIS reacts when Tony and Ziva come forward with their relationship and their coming child. I cannot say when the next story will be posted since I'm still trying to come up with all of the parts to the case. Any ideas and suggestions would be more than appreciated.

So what are you waiting for? Hit that pretty review button and tell me what you think!


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